


I Never Knew

by sincerityessential



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Child Abuse, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-29
Updated: 2019-06-04
Packaged: 2019-08-09 08:50:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 42,841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16446662
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sincerityessential/pseuds/sincerityessential
Summary: Everyone knew that Harry didn't grow up in the most loving home, but no one knew the extent of the abuse he suffered. If he is ever going to escape the abuse and learn to heal he needs someone to help him, but who can he trust?





	1. Broken

**August 2, 1993**

"GET HER DOWN!" Vernon Dursley stood from the table, his fat face turning purple with rage as he pointed a stubby finger at the woman bobbing along the ceiling.

"NO! I WON'T" Harry shouted back, moving towards the door.

"What did you say to me boy?" Vernon's voice was a whisper and Harry moved quickly towards the door, suddenly frightened of the look in his uncle's eyes. He looked like a madman.

Before he could reach the hallway, Vernon grabbed Harry by the collar of his shirt and jerked him forwards.

"Fix her now boy, or I swear you'll regret it" Harry jerked his head no, unable to speak because the material was slowly choking off his airway. The next second the side of his face exploded in pain as Vernon's fist made contact with it. Harry went flying and his head hit the corner of the table sitting in the hallway, opening a gash along his temple.

"I WON'T TAKE ANYMORE OF THIS!" Vernon shouted as he advanced on Harry, who was struggling to his feet. "YOU UNGRATEFUL, USELESS, FREAK!" He emphasized each word with a kick to his nephew, catching him in the stomach, chest and ribs. Harry groaned again as he tried to crawl away.

He made it to the foot of the stairs, but his uncle followed him, the yelling and abuse continuing. Vernon grabbed his nephew's arm and jerked him to his feet, eliciting a cry of pain from the thirteen-year-old. He raised his hand, ready to deal another blow when Petunia stopped him.

"Vernon! Someone's coming up the walk. It looks like the man from number 6. You know, the one whose wife just lost her job" Vernon looked down in loathing at the boy in front of him and threw him roughly up the stairs.

"To your room boy," he hissed "I'm not done with you yet."

Harry groaned and pulled himself up to the landing and crawled to his room.

There was a knock at the door.

_Harry collapsed in the middle of his floor. Blood obscured most of his vision, and it hurt to breathe._

"I am terribly sorry to have bothered you… No, that was my son and I having a row about which channel to watch…"

_'Just get to my wand' Harry thought, even as his head began to swim._

"Yes, things got pretty heated. You know how hotheaded kids can be… Sorry to disturb your night…"

_Harry dragged himself to his bed and reached between the mattresses for his wand. He knew he couldn't use it, he couldn't even see straight at the moment, but it felt better to have it._

The front door clicked shut and heavy footsteps came up the stairs.

_Harry sighed with relief when he glanced up to see Hedwig was not in her cage. He slumped to the floor but kept a firm grip on his wand. He felt safe with it._

His door slammed open and his enraged uncle stormed in. His eyes found Harry gripping his wand and his features became murderous.

_Not to attack, just safe. Harry's thoughts became more and more jumbled. It's safe. A safe place._

Vernon advance on his nephew and reached down for him.

_Safe… place… Harry readied himself for the next blow, curling tighter around his wand, but it never came. His world went dark, and his pain doubled as it felt like his entire body was being squeezed through a small tube._

oOoOOoOo

Severus Snape was not a patient man and greatly disliked any interruptions to his routine, so it was with great annoyance that he pushed back his chair from the dinner table as he flicked his wand to silence the alarms going off to notify him that someone had tried to get past his wards.

"I swear to Merlin if Albus has decided to take up making house calls…" he muttered as he swept through the front door of Snape Manor. He made his way down the sloping front lawns as he lit his wand and held it high over his head. Soon, he was standing at his front gates and peering into the gloom.

"Hello?" he called out. He waited a few moments before he started to turn back to the house. He stopped when he heard a small noise just beyond his wand light. If he didn't know better, Severus could have sworn it was a whimper. Shaking his head, he turned to the house again when the noise came again. Quickly tapping his wand to the gate and letting himself out, Severus made his way towards the sound.

Eventually, the light from his want revealed a sight that made his heart stop. Lying in the ditch just beyond his wards was what appeared to be a child. It was immediately apparent that the child was injured; he was lying on his side but what he could see was either bloody or bruised. Severus rushed towards the boy and quickly checked for signs of life. He breathed a sigh of relief when he felt the pulse thrumming, however faintly, under his fingers. Gently Severus rolled the boy onto his back and his hand flinched away automatically.

"Potter," he breathed, but the usual sense of loathing that came with seeing the self-centered brat did not surface. Well, not as much as usual anyway. The boy lying on the grass before him was not an arrogant, hero wannabe, but an injured child.

What made him sick though was the origin of these injuries. These wounds seemed to be inflicted by a muggle, and it was clearly not a meaningless fight the child had gotten into with the neighbourhood bully. Whoever caused these injuries was intent on seriously injuring the boy, if not worse. Severus gently slid the broken glasses off the boy's face and placed them and the wand that was lying by Harry's head in his robes. He picked up the boy and carried him to the manor.

He set the boy down on a bed in one of the many spare rooms before quickly sending a patronus to Dumbledore. Someone had to be looking for the boy by now, and he knew Dumbledore would take care of everything so Snape could take a look at the boy's injuries.

"Quinly!" the young house elf popped into the room as Snape was carefully cutting the shirt, which was much too large, from Harry's body.

"Master be needing Quinly sir?"

"Go to my store cupboard and bring me a bruise salve, a pain reducer potion, a disinfecting ointment and a bowl of warm water with a soft cloth" The house elf bowed before disapparating out of the room again. Snape's face wrinkled with disgust as he finally removed the article of clothing. Many bruises were covering Harry's torso, and not all of them were new. The boy was also much too thin. It was apparent that he rarely got enough to eat and was most probably starved. Severus grew angrier as his suspicions seemed to be confirmed. He had seen many cases of child abuse in his years at Hogwarts and had personal experience in that particular area. He shook his head away from those thoughts as Quinly reappeared and set all the requested items on the bedside table.

Snape quickly poured the potion down the boy's throat and waited for his reflexes to kick in and swallow it. The pain potions he had at his manor were stronger than the ones usually used on children, but it was the best he had right now. Hopefully the potion would keep the boy unconscious as well, letting the potions master see to his wounds and let his body heal. Next, he wet the cloth and gently started to clean the blood off of the boys head and torso. Once he was done that he stepped back to assess the damage.

The child had a long cut along his temple, which was quickly fixed with some ointment and a murmured spell, bruises covering his neck, arms and chest. The bruises on his chest worried Severus the most, as they were still rapidly darkening and there was swelling along on side which Severus suspected meant that at least one of Potter's ribs were cracked or broken. These injuries he fixed as best he could, with various salves and spells, all too aware of the child's whimpers even as he slept.

Severus also noticed many old injuries, including bruises and scars that looked like they extended onto Harry's back as well. He gently rolled the boy on his side to be sure there were no more fresh injuries on his back. There were none, but there was plenty of old scars that could be healed later when the boy woke up. He sighed in disgust before summoning an old t-shirt of his and slid the boy into it and pulled the comforter over him, leaving Potter to sleep off the potion.


	2. New Hope

**August 3, 1993**

Harry was extremely disoriented when he woke up the next morning. He was laying on a very soft surface, and it felt like a soft blanket was covering him. He blearily opened his eyes and blinked to try to bring the world into focus, but it didn't work. Everything was dark and blurry. He closed his eyes again as he began to register the dull ache throughout his entire body.

What the bloody hell happened? He thought to himself. Slowly the memories began coming back to him. Aunt Marge insulting his parents, accidentally blowing her up, Uncle Vernon's anger, him coming into Harry's room with a murderous look on his face… Try as he might, Harry couldn't remember what happened after his uncle came into his room. Maybe he was dead? That was a possibility, and the more he thought about it, Harry thought that perhaps he didn't mind being dead. He wouldn't have to put up with his uncle's beatings anymore, or his aunt's harsh words, or the rude remarks from students and professors at Hogwarts.

Yes, he thought, I might like this dead thing after all. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Harry realized that he should probably be more alarmed at these thoughts, but he pushed that feeling away and instead pushed himself into a sitting position. If he was dead, he might as well explore the afterlife.

He glanced around and noticed that it wasn't completely dark. To his right was a tiny sliver of light along the floor. As he watched, the sliver expanded and grew until Harry realized it was a door opening into the room he was in. He watched in trepidation as the door opened and a large shadowy figure stepped through. Horror clawed at Harry's chest as he frantically started reaching around him for his glasses. He froze when a familiar drawling voice came from the figure in the doorway.

"Your glasses are on the nightstand to your right Mr. Potter, as is your wand."

He hastily snatched both objects from the table and shoved his glasses on, bringing the potions master into focus.

"What the bloody hell are you doing here?" Harry blurt out before he could stop himself, and he mentally cringed. Now he was going to get it. The potions master sneered at him before replying.

"I see your manners are as atrocious as ever, Potter. You are in my home, and you are going to treat me with respect. Is that understood" He levelled the boy with a scathing glare and waited for him to nod frantically before continuing. "I'm assuming you are hungry. Come along, we have a lot to discuss."

Harry immediately jumped out of bed and onto the cold stone floor, his body protesting mildly. He quickly followed the greasy git out of the room, glancing down to notice that he had different clothes on since yesterday. His shirt was still incredibly oversized, but it was clean and in good condition. He was still wearing the same dirty jeans from before, but they seemed to have shrunk, so they weren't nearly as big on him anymore.

The two made their way from the bedroom to the dining room silently. Harry was taking in his surroundings with wide eyes. The house (or mansion, as Harry suspected) was different than he thought the man's home would look like. Just like in the bedroom, the floors were all cold stone, and the walls in the hallway were a cool grey colour, although Harry could see that some walls in the rooms off of the hall had more colour even though it was mostly all dark green. Unlike the man's office and classroom in Hogwarts though, many windows were letting warm light into the rooms lining the hall. Harry had thought that the entire house would look like a dungeon.

 

By the time they made it to the dining room, Harry's stomach was churning anxiously. Why was he here and what was Snape going to do to him? On that note, what was his uncle going to do to him when Snape took him back. Oh boy, he was going to be so much trouble. Harry went back to his thoughts before Snape had opened that door. Yes, he definitely would rather be dead right now.

oOoOOoOo

Severus tried to rein in his irritation with the boy as he finally pushed open the doors to the dining room and waved Potter in, motioning for him to take a seat at the table that was covered in food. It was a struggle though as two parts of him waged war in his mind.

This was Potter for Merlin's sake! The insufferable, know-it-all, attention seeking, brat that he had to put up with the past two years.

But he was an injured and possibly abused child the more rational part of his mind pointed out.

That was still no excuse to be disrespectful! Just look at the first, and only, thing he said this morning.

He's confused and probably scared though. He woke up in a strange place after going through some sort of horror last night.

Severus glanced up from his seat at the table, and his irritation rose again. Potter was just standing there like a dunderhead with an odd expression on his face. He seemed confused, fearful even.

"Sit down boy" he snapped, managing to keep the usual venom out of his voice when he addressed Potter. The boy flinched and jumped so quickly into the chair that one would think that the floor was burning his feet. Severus pushed down the wave of guilt he felt when he saw how the boy reacted.

"You must be starving. Eat some breakfast, and then we will talk." His voice was much gentler than before. The boy still watched him warily as he hesitantly reached for some toast. He never took his eyes off of the professor, seeming to expect some horrible consequence if he did.

The two ate in relative silence for a few minutes, the older one trying to focus on the mornings Daily Prophet and the younger one sneaking glances at his professor every few seconds. Finally, Harry couldn't take the silence anymore and nervously eyed Snape.

"Sir?"

"Yes, Potter?"

"What am I doing here?"

Severus sighed at the question before folding his paper and putting it down. He couldn't concentrate on reading it anyway, but he had hoped that this conversation could wait until after breakfast, preferably after Dumbledore got here. He eyed the boy critically before the boy blushed and started fiddling with his food again.

"I was hoping you could answer that question actually,"

Potter's eyes snapped up to his, his expression bewildered.

"I don't understand. I'm at your house. I don't remember how that happened."

Severus again observed the child. He couldn't tell if the boy was lying or not and he tried to smother the snarky voice in his head telling him that of course Potter was lying to him.

"My wards went off last night. I found you outside of my manor, unconscious and almost dead. I brought you inside to heal you, and so you could rest." Severus watched the boy's panicked expression as he kept his tone and face neutral. "Now Potter, I want you to tell me what happened last night."

Potter immediately started shaking his head.

"Nothing. Nothing happened."

"Don't lie to me boy!" He snapped before could help himself. Potter flinched back, and Severus pinched the bridge of his nose. "Try again, Potter. How did you get into that condition and how did you get outside my home?"

The boy gripped the arms of his chair and looked like he wanted to bolt.

"Who did this to you, Potter?" Snape asked gently, but the only response he got was more head shaking. "Was it your relatives? Your aunt and uncle?"

"NO!" the boy almost shouted, his eyes wild and fearful. "No! It wasn't them. It was…. Uhhh… it was- a car! Yeah. A car hit me, and I uhh… I walked here? Yeah, I ran away because I am stupid and foolish and jealous of my cousin and a car hit me and-"

He was cut off by Severus who stood up from his chair and carefully made his way over to the frightened boy. He knelt beside the child and placed a hand his arm, ignoring the boy's flinch at the contact.

"Don't lie, child," he chided gently and held up a finger to stop the child from responding.

"Potter-" he paused again, "Harry… We can help you, but you need to tell me the truth. I have suspicions about what happened last night, and many other nights before that for that matter, but I don't have any proof, any evidence of who gave you those injuries. It is going to be much harder to remove you from a bad situation if you don't tell me what happened."

Harry suddenly shoved his chair back from the table and jumped away from Severus, who stood up slowly. The child was shaking his head again, and he looked close to tears.

"No! I can't! You don't understand. I can't." His voice broke at the end, and Severus looked at the child with pity. He seemed to be calming himself down at least, Severus thought. No good would come out of the Boy-Who-Lived making himself pass out. It was silent for a few moments before Harry spoke again.

"It's not their fault anyway. If I weren't so horrible, I wouldn't need to be punished." He looked up into Severus's shocked face. "What? You know it too. I'm a foolish boy, the stupidest of the dunderheads, I always make trouble, I don't have any manners, I'm lazy, I don't listen-"

"Stop!" Severus snapped. "Yes, you can be many of those things at times, but what 13-year-old boy isn't? And what was done to you was not punishment. It was abuse, plain and simple. Beating a child within an inch of his life is no way to treat him, no matter what he did. Understood?"

Harry just stared at him uncertainly but was saved from having to answer when a bell chimed throughout the house. Snape cursed and glanced towards the door and back to Harry.

"Quinly!" He called and the house elf popped into the room. "I believe that is Headmaster Dumbledore at the gate. Please escort him to my study. Harry, I have much to discuss with the headmaster. I would like you to find your way back to the guest room and wait there to be summoned. I will have Quinly bring you some more food when he gets back. You hardly touched anything on your plate."

With that Snape turned and walked out of the room and into another one a little way down the hall.

"Up the stairs, and third door on the left!" he called before snapping the door shut behind him. Harry hesitantly made his way back through the house, a lump in his throat and his stomach churning with more anxiety than he had felt in a very long time.

Severus sat at his desk, rubbing his temples as he glared at the door. This was a horribly sticky situation, and he would rather be doing anything than dealing with it at the moment. It wasn't that Severus had never seen a case of abuse before. Hell, he had been an abuse case at one point, and due to the sheer number of children who came from homes run by former supporters of Voldemort, he dealt with many hurt children every year.

But this… this was different. It was not every day that a child turned up at your home, beaten and bloody and nearly dead. And the child being the Golden Boy, the Boy-Who-Lived, Dumbledore's pampered prince; the one child that he loathed with his entire being. So many of his conceptions about the life of that damned boy had been shattered last night, and Severus was still trying to work his head around it.

His musings were cut short though, with a knock at his study door.

"Come in!" he called quietly. The door opened, and the Headmaster stepped through. It had been a long time since Severus had seen the man so serious and apprehensive. That loathsome twinkle in the old wizard's eyes was gone, and as he sat down across from Severus, he just looked tired.

"What have you found out my boy? Tell me everything that happened."

"Its… bad, Albus" he drawled slowly. "The boy appeared outside my wards last night, and I can honestly say his condition was worse than I've seen from any of my snakes. The boy was almost dead…"

He trailed off as he observed the headmaster. The man had lowered his head into his hands, but Severus knew that he needed to tell him everything that he had found.

"I healed him as best I could. He had lost quite of bit of blood from a head wound and multiple broken bones. He should be fine physically but mentally… he will need time. There was evidence of many old wounds as well, burns and scars that looked like they came from a belt or something similar were all over his back. He is severely malnourished as well."

Albus looked up from his hands, and Severus could see the pain and regret lining the man's face.

"Did he say what happened? Would he talk to you at all?"

"I got some information out of him. I still don't know how he ended up here, and he did not give me a straight confession that those wretched relatives of his did this, but he shows all the signs of abuse" Severus hesitated, debating telling Dumbledore the next part.

"He did tell me though, that he deserved it. He said that if he weren't so horrible, then he would not need to be punished. I think that will be enough information to remove Potter from the home without Ministry interference."

Albus looked sick for a second before his expression became one of determination.

"We will do right by him Severus. I have made an incredible mistake in leaving Mr. Potter at that residence, but I will fix it."

Severus nodded absentmindedly at Dumbledore's statement.

"So where will he be placed? Will he be made a ward of the school?" He looked up at Albus and felt his stomach drop. There was that damned twinkle back again, and that never bore good news.

"No, I would think not. If he were to be made a ward of the school, the Board of Governors would have too much influence on the boy. For his safety, I think it would be best that the child's move be discreet. The fewer people who know, the safer he will be. After all, once he is moved he will lose the protection of the blood wards."

"Then who? Will you take the boy in? He does have a certain attachment for you."

"While I could provide a caring home for the boy, I don't think it would be the best possible environment for him. He needs someone who will care for him as a parent and who can keep up with him. I could definitely care for him, but at my age, I am not as swift as I used to be. I could not possibly keep the young Mr. Potter as active and engaged as a 13-year-old needs to be. Plus, you know how much work I need to do as Headmaster and for the Wizengamot before the term begins."

Severus rolled his eyes at the professor. He may be old, but he was far from slowing down. He started to get a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. Dumbledore was watching him with a slight smile, and that abominable twinkle was growing.

"Of course. He will go with Minerva. That is obvious. She is his Head of House, and she cares very much about the boy. She will be the perfect guardian."

"Again, he would be happy there, but it won't be the environment he needs to thrive. Minerva would be more than happy of course to bring the boy in but she is dealing with her ailing aunt the rest of the summer. She won't be able to devote her full attention to helping him heal from his ordeals. Although, I suppose she would pamper him. He would never want for anything, she would shower the boy in attention and gifts. I dare say, he would be absolutely spoiled…"

Severus shook his head in disgust.

"Spoiling is definitely not what Potter needs. Who then? Pomona? Poppy? Filius? Hagrid? Filch?!" His voice was rising in desperation as he headmaster regarded him in amusement.

"Why, Severus my dear boy. I do think that you will make the best guardian for the young Mr. Potter."

Severus sputtered in outrage. He stood up from his desk and started pacing to get rid of his anxious energy. If that daft old man thought for one minute that he was going to even entertain the idea of taking in Harry bloody Potter, he had gone bonkers. Absolutely, completely, over the edge mad. There was no way he was taking in the insufferable brat. He turned on his heel and levelled the headmaster with a glare that would send students running.

"No. There is no way I am taking in that child. No bloody way in hell is that arrogant brat living under my roof for a single second longer than necessary. You can take him away with you when you leave today." Severus had to turn away again when the headmaster looked at him with nothing more than disappointment.

"Severus, why can't you admit you were wrong about the boy? Have you no compassion for what the child has gone through? I truly believe that you two would get along splendidly if you could only look past your prejudices."

Severus turned again to glare at the man.

"Don't you dare Albus! You know that I pity what that boy has gone through. I am absolutely disgusted at his treatment. No child ever deserves to be treated that way. I want to rip those vile muggles apart piece by piece as they beg for mercy. No one wants that more than me Albus. I will admit that I had some misconceptions about the boy, but that does not mean who he is has changed. He is his father through and through. I have taught the brat for two years and I know that him coming here will not make him, or I for that matter, happy. So no Albus."

"Quite the contrary, I find him to be very much like his mother. And none of his other professors seem to have the problems with Harry that you do. Perhaps, if he had a more warm welcome into your class in his first year, you two would not but heads as often as you do…" The old coot just smiled softly at Severus as he spluttered and began pacing again, trying to formulate a snide comeback for the headmaster. Albus let this go on for a few minutes before he intervened again.

"Severus. Surely even you see how this is the most beneficial place for the child to be. You have experience with abuse, you can guide the child through all the mental hurdles in the months to come. And you are more than capable of helping him heal from all the physical wounds as well. He will have someone close to his parents' ages to look out for him. And he will be safe here. He can be hidden from prying eyes and former Death Eaters. And even though you will technically still be his guardian come September, you will only have to really worry about him for another month. After that, he will be at the castle, and no one will be any wiser to what happened."

Severus finally calmed down enough to sit down, and he glared down at his desk as he took in Dumbledore's words.

"Fine," he bit out, his tone icy. "I will take the boy in. But! There will be no spoiling the boy. He will get the necessities and nothing more. He does not need his every whim and desire fulfilled. He will learn to show respect. I will not have any nonsense from him, understood?"

"Oh, of course, Severus. Nothing but bread and water for the boy. Wouldn't want the child to get a big head, now would we?" The headmaster replied, his face completely serious but that damned twinkle was back in his eyes and brighter than ever.

oOoOOoOo

Stupid, Stupid, Stupid! Harry angrily paced up and down the hard stone floor in the large guest bedroom. After being dismissed by Snape, he had found his way back to the room he slept in and threw open the curtains from the window before shutting the door behind him and letting the realization of what he had revealed sink in.

How could I be so bloody stupid? I am so dead now. Uncle Vernon is actually going to kill me this time. Harry shuddered as he remembered the last time he had accidentally let slip that he had a not-so-ideal home life to his primary school teacher. He had been beaten and thrown into his cupboard for days, which was quite alright with him, as it took over two days for Harry to feel okay enough to even try moving much. It was his fault though. He knew the rules very clearly, and he had broken them.

He thumped himself angrily on the forehead. Now that he was alone, many excuses came into his mind about how he had gotten those injuries, all of them more believable than a bloody car hitting him and Harry walking to Snape Manor. He could have got mugged in London while running errands for his Aunt, or gotten into a nasty fight with the neighbourhood kids… He still couldn't explain how he had gotten here though. If Snape was telling the truth, then he had just shown up out of nowhere, and Harry couldn't remember a thing about how it happened.

Harry was drawn out of his thoughts when the same house-elf he had seen earlier popped into his room carrying a tray of breakfast foods and a tall glass of pumpkin juice.

"Hello Mr. Potter, sir. Master Severus be instructing me to bring you more food. He be saying that you must eat more Mr. Potter, sir."

Harry snorted as the small elf carefully placed the tray on the desk in the corner of the room.

"I'm thirteen! I don't need some greasy git telling me when I need to eat." He huffed in indignation but moved towards the desk anyways. He was rather hungry still, even though his stomach again twisted in worry.

The elf eyed the small boy standing in front of him with disbelief, and Harry narrowed his eyes.

"What?" he snapped, and the elf quickly looked away.

"Forgive me, Mr. Potter, sir. But did you say you were thirteen?" the elf gave a nervous chuckle and Harry huffed in annoyance again. He knew he was a little short for his age, but he didn't look that young!

"Yes! For your information, I turned thirteen a few days ago. So there!" Harry barely suppressed the childish urge to stick his tongue out at the elf. Instead, he turned his back and sat at the desk, ignoring the presence of the other being. Quinly gave a little bow to try to cover up his chuckle before disapparating with a pop.

It was quite a while later before Harry was disturbed again. Long enough for him to finish eating and explore the entirety of the sparse room (which was really just a bed, nightstand, desk and wardrobe. He tried to see what he could see out the window (nothing except for a long lawn in every direction and ending at a neat line of trees straight ahead), and finally gave up and slumped down on the bed and began counting the number of thin stripes on the canopy above him. He was at 197 when the tell-tale pop alerted him to Quinly's arrival. He nervously looked over at the young elf and sat up.

"Quinly will be bringing the young Mr. Potter to Master now," he squeaked and motioned for Harry to follow him out of the room, which he did after a slight hesitation.

He shuffled his feet as he traced the same path as earlier in the day and came to a stop in front of the heavy wooden door that Snape had disappeared into earlier. Harry took a deep breath and knocked hesitantly, slightly surprised when it was the Headmaster's voice urging him to come in. Pushing on the door, he looked with wide eyes around the study.

Large bookcases ran to the tall ceiling, filled with books, along three of the walls. Along the fourth, there were two big bay windows with comfortable looking, green-cushioned window seats. Harry could see more sprawling lawns out of these windows as well as a long walkway that ended at a huge iron gate in the distance. The room was sparsely furnished, with two black leather armchairs and a small table between them against the shelves to Harry's left and a solid dark wooden desk with two chairs in front of it straight in front of Harry, between the two windows.

Harry finally let his gaze settle on the occupants of the room. Professor Dumbledore sat in one of the chairs and waved Harry forward with a kind smile. Snape, on the other hand, sat behind the desk with an even more vicious scowl on his face than usual. He hesitantly made his way over to perch on the edge of the chair, keeping both men in his sights. When he noticed Harry's discomfort, Snape made an effort to tame his expression.

"Morning, sir," Harry smiled slightly at Dumbledore.

"Good morning, my boy! I expect you slept well, and Professor Snape here has welcomed you graciously to his home?" Dumbledore smiled warmly at Harry and turned his smirk to Snape when he caught the professor rolling his eyes. "Now Harry. You are a smart boy, you realize that I am not here on a social visit. Neither are you, incidentally."

Harry squirmed uncomfortably in his chair as the headmaster levelled him with a serious look. He could feel the gaze of the potions master burning holes in his head, but he refused to acknowledge him.

"First of all Harry, I want to express my sincerest apologies to you. It is my fault for not listening to what you were trying to tell me the past two years. And even beyond that, it was my decision to place you with your relatives. Therefore, I take full responsibility for what you went through. You will never know how truly sorry I am, my dear boy."

"No! There's nothing to be sorry for sir! I'm not, I mean… They don't- I'm treated fine, okay?" he ground out in frustration. He was growing irritated with all the fuss they were making. Abuse was a heavy concept for him to wrap his mind around. He wasn't abused! He was a rotten freak, and they treated him as well as any freak should be treated. "You don't understand. It- it wasn't them. Everything is fine. You can just…"

He tried to force the words 'send me back' past his lips, but he found it to be impossible. Harry knew it was inevitable that he would be going back there, and also knew that every moment away was making it worse for himself when he eventually did go back, but he just couldn't say it.

"That's enough, Mr. Potter," Snape said firmly, but not cruelly. "You will not be sent back to live with those vile beasts, so stop worrying about that and talk to us."

Albus nodded his agreement and leaned closer to Harry.

"You are safe Harry. You have nothing to fear. I will not fail you again, you will never be sent back there again."

Harry felt the stirrings of hope, but he squashed those firmly down again. Hope wasn't good for much he had learned.

"But sir. The blood wards! You said so yourself, they are important. I need to go back!"

"Calm yourself, Harry. Yes, ideally you would still be under the protection of the blood wards, but it is not important enough for us to risk your safety. There is no point to the wards if they cannot protect you from those inside them. We will make do with all other sorts of protections. You will be safe Harry."

"So, I don't have to go back?" Harry's voice sounded pitiful, even to his own ears. Albus nodded again and smiled at the boy, but Harry just shook his head in confusion.

"Where will I go then, sir? Will I go back to Hogwarts with you?"

"Now this is where things get tricky. As I said, your safety is my number one priority. Especially with the lack of blood wards for protection, we need to place you in the safest place possible. Unfortunately, that does not include Hogwarts. You must be legally separated from the Dursley's to ensure that they do not have any sort of hold over you, but I think it is safest if this fact was not known to the masses. There are many threats out there. If you were to become a ward of the school, then multiple departments of the Ministry must be informed as well as the Board of Governors. The best way to keep you safe is for a private guardianship to be arranged."

"Like an adoption? Who would do that?"

"Not quite Harry. Guardianship will be transferred from your aunt and uncle to someone else which will give them legal responsibility for you, but it is not quite an adoption. It will also be easier to keep confidential, as there will be no need for name-changing or new bloodline registries to be made. As for who..." the headmaster trailed off with a small smile and his eyes flickered over to Snape, who was looking most displeased again. Harry had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. "We have decided it to be the best option that Professor Snape here oversees your guardianship!"

Before he knew it, Harry was on his feet and backing away from the desk. He looked helplessly between the two adults.

"No! No way. He can't! Isn't there anyone else? At all? He doesn't even like me, professor! I don't-" Harry cut himself off before he got himself in trouble. He looked over to Snape again who had him fixed with another glare, albeit his usual coldness was not there.

"Stop being childish Potter and come sit down. Haven't you ever heard not to look a gift horse in the mouth?"

Harry shuffled begrudgingly back to his seat, a glare set on his face that could rival one of the potions masters.

"Yeah right. If you are a gift, then I'm Merlin..." he grumbled under his breath as he sat down.

Dumbledore chuckled and clapped his hands together, glancing at the clock on the wall.

"Well, I'm glad that this is off to such a wonderful start. I know you two will get along just great!" he said with a smile. He made a move to get out of the chair, but Harry stopped him.

"Professor, please," Harry said quietly, feeling shame as tears threatened to form. The headmaster got up to kneel beside the young boy.

"Harry, I know I have made mistakes in the past, but I promise you this isn't going to be another one. Professor Snape is the most qualified person to take care of you and help you to deal with everything you have gone through. You will be safe here, and I hope happy as well." He stood up and looked between the two boys. "Now, I expect you both to be on your best behaviour and treat each other with respect. I suggest that you both forget about the past and start new from today. This might be the fresh start that both of you need."

Dumbledore turned and started walking to the door. He was about halfway there before he paused and looked back.

"Harry, I am not going to ask you for details about what transpired at the Dursley's last night, but there is one thing I am curious about. How on earth did you end up outside of Snape Manor? It is hundreds of miles from Privet Drive." Dumbledore levelled Harry with a serious look as he asked his question. It was not a look he gave often, and it compelled Harry to answer him.

"I- I don't exactly know sir. Uncle was uhhh... He sent me to my room and told me he wasn't done dealing with me yet. I was scared, and I think I grabbed my wand before I ummm, laid down," he held his hands up defensively at Dumbledore's raised eyebrow "Not to attack him or anything! I just felt safer with it. I don't know, I guess. And then he came in, and he looked mad, and I got scared again, and all I could think of was how my wand made me feel safer and I uhhh, I think I started wishing I was in a safe place. I can't really remember what happened. I just remember everything hurting and then the next thing I knew I was waking up here."

Harry shrugged as Dumbledore scratched his chin thoughtfully. He refused to glance at Snape. He didn't want to be here, and he didn't know why he was, and he didn't want to see Snape's reaction to his story.

"Interesting," Dumbledore replied before turning to the door again. "I must be off my dear boys. Try not to kill each other while I am away. Severus, I will owl you some paperwork to fill out at your earliest convenience."

He was out the door before either of them could say anything after him, and the two were left in uncomfortable silence. Harry finally glanced up at the potions master. He was watching Harry with a slight scowl on his face, but his expression was one of the nicest one's Harry had ever seen grace the older wizard's features.

Well, thought Harry. I wouldn't quite say nice, but definitely not looking like he wants to skin me alive anymore.

They silently stared at each other for a few more moments before Snape signed and pushed his chair back from the desk.

"I suppose you need your own room now," he said simply, before gesturing for Harry to follow him out of the room. The pair was halfway up the staircase before Harry spoke up.

"But sir, what is wrong with the room I was sleeping in before?"

"That is hardly suitable for any ward of mine. Those are merely the guest bedrooms. All of the personal rooms are on the upper floors." He stated without even turning around.

Harry did notice that the eight doorways leading off of the hallway on the second floor were either identical sparsely decorated bedrooms or simple, yet elegant bathrooms. The ascended another staircase up two stories. On the third floor, Snape paused to point to a set of closed, black wooden doors in which Harry was instructed he was never, under any circumstances to enter uninvited. It was the potion master's personal potions lab, and he had hazardous substances in there at times. When Harry nodded his understanding, they continued onto the fourth, and final floor. This hallway was just as long as the others, but only had four doors leading off of it. All the doors were closed and a window taking up most of the wall at the end of the hallway provided plenty of light. Snape strode to the end before pausing between two doors. He glanced back and forth across the hall before glancing back at Harry as well.

"Yes, I think this one will do." He muttered before pushing the door open on the left and turning to Harry. "Why don't you get settled and relax for a bit? Feel free to explore the Manor, as long as you stay out of my room, study and lab. I would prefer if you stayed indoors until I can give you a proper tour of the grounds and the boundaries. There is a library on the second floor that you can entertain yourself with just don't take anything out of the room. Please don't break anything and keep your hands to yourself. Lunch will be served at 12:30 sharp and if you need anything before that, call Quinly and he will be able to help you."

"But sir…" Harry trailed off helplessly. Snape's kind expression softened even further at the boy's confusion.

"I know you have a lot of questions and there is a lot we still must talk about, but both of us need a break I think. Make yourself comfortable and relax. We will talk after we have a nice lunch, alright?" When Harry nodded his head glumly, the professor turned and walked back down the corridor, descending the stairs.

Harry entered the room, filled with anticipation. The room was huge! Almost twice the size as the one he had woken up in and much more comfortably furnished.

Comfortable for a Slytherin Harry's inner voice commented snidely. The entire room was green, silver and black. The floors were still stone, and the walls were a dull grey colour. Situated in the middle of the wall directly across from him was a huge canopy bed with a thick green comforter with silver thread weaving a pattern covering it, and even darker green curtains tied against the posts. Framing the bed on either side were large windows with black curtains swept to the sides, and Harry was delighted to see that one even had a window seat (cushioned with more of the same black material). A soft looking silver and black area rug was placed under the bed and covered a good area around it. The bed itself was made of dark wood, as were the matching bed tables on either side.

To Harry's left was a fireplace with a comfortable looking armchair in front of it (again, upholstered in dark green) and a narrow bookcase on either side, both of which were empty. Across from the bed sat a large wardrobe and a desk with a chair, both made of the same dark wood as the rest of the furniture.

Harry walked over to the window, expecting to see more endless lawn in every direction, but was pleasantly surprised to be able to see much more than just grass. At the end of the vast green expanse, there seemed to be an orchard stretching far in the distance. Harry could swear he could see a wide stream making its way through the grove as well. He could also see various greenhouses to the right, just before the orchard started. With a smile, Harry swept his gaze across the room again.

His eyes zeroed in on a door in the middle of the wall to his right. He tentatively walked over to it and pushed it open. Inside was a huge bathroom with a toilet, sink, black tiled shower, and a separate bathtub with stone steps leading into it. The walls were a deep green colour and the towels hanging on the rack were black. There was a full mirror that covered most of the wall above the sink and counter. Harry took a quick look at himself in it and marvelled at his unmarked face. There had definitely been bruises there yesterday, even before his uncle punished him.

He felt the familiar stirrings of hope begin again and he smiled despite himself. Maybe things were going to be okay after all. With his newfound happiness giving him courage, he made his way back to the door and peaked out into the hallway. It was time to 'explore' as Snape had suggested.


	3. Old Fears

**August 3, 1993**

Harry crept silently down the hall and decided to peek into the two other rooms on the top floor, steering clear of the door that Snape indicated was his room. Even though Snape had told him he was allowed to look around, the complete silence that pervaded the entire house made him feel the need to be quiet as he moved around. No use in making Snape mad at him so quickly.

He found the other two bedrooms to be fairly similar to his own, but with small differences. Neither room had a window seat, one had only a single bookcase and no rug under the bed, the other had a love seat instead of an armchair in front of the fireplace. Harry noted that he had just over an hour before he was expected to be down in the dining room for lunch. He carefully closed the doors before making his way down the flight of stairs. This floor had eight rooms, five on the left and three on the right. Snape's private lab was the last door on the right, Harry remembered.

A quick examination of the rooms along the left side of the hall revealed two smaller bedrooms on either end of the house, with two bathrooms and a sitting room between them. These bedrooms were not as fancy as the rooms upstairs but still were nicer than Harry had seen before. The rooms at Hogwarts were magnificent, but Harry did have to share them with four other boys. The sitting room was simple enough, with some tables and couches and some shelves in the corner.

Harry then crossed the hall and pushed the door open to what he assumed was the library that Snape had mentioned. His eyes went wide with amazement as he took in the huge room. There were even more books in here than in Snape's study! The bookshelves ran floor to ceiling all around the tall room, only interrupted by squares cut out of them for windows to let light into the room. Each window had a window seat under it. Another row of shorter bookcases that came just below Harry's shoulders ran the perimeter of the room as well about five feet from the outer shelves. There were four openings in these shelves, one on each side of the room, to let you walk into the center of the library where there were all sorts of comfy looking chairs and couches with tables beside them to sit in while you read. Harry was amazed by the vast collection of books, even though he wasn't much of a reader; that was Hermione's job. He also didn't get much of a chance to read in his free time growing up with the Dursley's. He was never given any books, and since he got into trouble for doing better than Dudley in school, Harry found it easier if he honestly didn't know the answers. That habit had stuck with Harry even after he had entered Hogwarts and didn't have to worry about that anymore.

He browsed some of the titles on the shelf closest to him. They seemed to be about the Dark Arts, though not all of them were bad. Melting Skin and Severing Limbs: Curses for your Enemies was placed between Light and Dark: The Difference between the Ancient Magics and A Beginners Guide to Wandless Magic. Harry's interest piqued at the last title. His hand started reaching for it, but he stopped himself.

Had Snape actually given him permission to read it? He had said to keep his hands to himself… Reluctantly Harry tore his eyes away from the book. As much as he didn't want to admit it, the potions master terrified him. Harry knew that the older man hated him, and now that they weren't in Hogwarts, nothing was stopping him from acting on that hatred. Uncle had always bided his time for when he couldn't get caught too.

Harry suppressed a shudder and stepped back. Better not to risk anything, he decided. Instead, he wanted to explore the rest of the house before lunch. There probably wasn't that much time left anyway. Harry quickly exited the room before he could get himself into trouble.

He made his way back to the end of the hall and down the set of stairs. He quickly walked passed all the doors to the middle of the hallway on the second floor and descended the grand staircase into a massive foyer. This was the first time since coming here that Harry really paid any attention to his surroundings as he made his way to the main level. He glanced up, and his jaw fell open in shock. The room just kept going up and up. Harry guessed that the ceiling was at least three stories above him. It was then that Harry really realized that as massive as the top three floors seemed, they weren't anything compared to the main floor. He guessed that the upper levels only covered the back half of the house.

Makes sense, Harry thought to himself. All the people you would try to impress probably don't get to see upstairs much. That's just for family and guests.

He stood in the middle of the foyer for a few moments before shaking himself out of his stupor. He glanced both directions and decided to head to the left. The hallway to the right led to the dining room and Snape's study, he knew, as well as to two or three other rooms that he hadn't seen before. The other side of the house had yet to be explored though, so he set off.

As soon as he entered the hallway, he noticed it branched off to the left, leading further into the house. On his right were what appeared to be a music room with a giant piano, and a trophy room of some sort. He entered the hallway and peeked into the rooms as he passed. There was a bathroom to his left, what appeared to be a classroom and another office on his right, and as he made his way towards the end of the hallway, the last door to the left opened into a vast room with a raised walkway in the middle. The walls were all padded, and there were stuffed dummies against one wall. It took a moment for everything to click in Harry's mind.

It must be a duelling room! The raised platform was almost identical to the one that had been set up in the great hall for duelling club last year. Harry found himself grinning as he remembered what a fool Lockhart had made of himself. He had no chance at all if the potions master had his own private duelling room in his house.

The grin stayed on Harry's face as he finally made his way to the very end of the hall, where it opened up to a huge, and comfortable looking living room. This was probably the first room that Harry saw that he felt truly comfortable in. It was home-y even if it was gigantic. He was startled out of his thoughts when a female voice called out.

"Why, what is this? A child? Come here boy, you don't look like my little dragon,"

Harry looked around wildly before his gaze settled on a painting above the fireplace on the left-hand wall. He nervously made his way over.

"H-hello madam,"

The lady in the portrait smiled. She looked quite young, probably only in her thirties, with pale skin and long flowing black hair that hung around her shoulders. She was quite pretty Harry decided.

"And you have manners too! What is your name child, and if you don't mind me asking, what are you doing here?"

"I-I'm Harry miss. I'm staying here for the summer apparently. Professor Snape is my guardian now…" Harry trailed off with a scowl.

"Now, now. What is that look for?"

"Nothing! Sorry! It's just… well you see, me and Snape don't get on very well. And well, he- he kind of scares me" Harry rushed out, his hands trembling. Now he had done it. He was rude, and she would tell Snape, and he would be punished. The lady only smiled softly at him though.

"Don't you worry, Harry dear. Severus is really a kind man at heart. He just doesn't show it well. And if he steps out of line, you let me know, and he will get an ear full. I'm his great-great-grandmother. My name is Eliza Prince by the way. How about you just call me Aunt Elly though? It's what all the little ones call me anyways."

Harry nodded enthusiastically. He really liked this woman already. She was a lot nicer than Snape at least. Suddenly, something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. There was a flurry of white movement just outside of the window. Harry peered out and almost cheered in excitement. Hedwig was sitting on a tree, only a dozen feet from the edge of the house!

oOoOOoOo

Severus smiled slightly as he rounded the corner, listening as he heard voices in the room ahead. Seems like the boy had met Eliza. The smile quickly turned into a scowl though, as he entered the room just in time to see Harry swing open the door leading to the back patio.

"I see you are no better at listening to rules now than you are at school. Did I not tell you to stay inside?"

Harry flinched and turned quickly, slamming the door shut again, but not before catching his hand between the door and frame. The child looked so wholly terrified that Severus felt a twinge of guilt. He had to remember to be gentler with the boy. Harry was not one of his snakes, who were used to his scowls and stern words, and knew that nothing more terrifying would come from them than a lecture and detention.

"I-I'm sorry, sir! I'm sorry. Please, sir, I'm sorry. I won't do it again. Please…" Harry's babbling grew incoherent as he clutched his injured hand to his chest and pressed himself against the wall.

When Severus began to walk towards the boy, Harry flinched back again and sunk to the ground, still pleading with his professor. He didn't need to look over to know the scathing look Eliza was giving him right now. He slowly made his way over to the boy and knelt next to him, ignoring the child's flinch as he put his hand on his shoulder.

"Hey now, calm down, child. It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you. You are okay." He kept murmuring to the child until Harry started to calm down and stop his constant litany of apologies. He lifted his face from his knees and Severus was chagrinned to see tears streaming down Harry's face.

"I'm the one who should be apologizing. I didn't mean to scare you. I will never hurt you, child. Never. Not even if you broke every single rule I put down for you, and you managed to blow up my house while doing it. Okay?" Severus spoke gently to Harry, trying to get Harry to see reason. He might not particularly like the boy, but he was going to be his charge soon, and he had to get him to understand that he will never be hurt in his house.

Harry nodded slowly, but Severus could tell that he didn't believe it. He sighed and shook his head. It was just something they would have to work on.

"Now, can you tell me why you were going outside when I expressly told you not to?"

"H-Hedwig is out there," Harry sniffled. At Severus' confused look, Harry continued. "Hedwig, my owl. I haven't seen her since- well, since before I came here. And I was worried she went home, and Uncle-"

Harry stopped and sucked in a big breath, holding back more tears. He was embarrassed enough that the potions master had already seen him cry.

"I see. While I would prefer you followed the rules, I understand why you broke them. How about you let me fix your hand you foolish boy, and you can go see that your owl is okay, then we will go eat our lunch before it gets cold."

Severus watched as Harry slowly held out his hand, watching his every move. It was almost like Harry expected him to lash out at any minute still, which was probably right. A quick spell later, Harry's hand was good as new, and the boy hesitantly opened the door again, looking back at Severus to make sure this wasn't a trick. Severus nodded, and Harry darted outside and ran to where a snowy owl was perched on a tree.

"Quinly!" Severus called, and the elf appeared. "Please open the window to Mister Potter's room and put an owl perch and some food in there."

The elf nodded and disappeared as Harry ran back to the house, a grin on his face. The smile stayed there all the way to the dining room and through most of the meal, in which Harry chattered on about all the things he found while exploring the Manor.

"- and the library was cool. There was this book there about wandless magic, and that seemed pretty cool. I didn't even know you could do that. And I wanted to read it but- Well, I didn't really know if I was allowed to, sir." Harry looked down at his empty plate as his said this.

"Of course you can, boy." Harry flinched slightly when he said this, and Severus frowned to himself. That was the second time today the boy had flinched when Severus said something seemingly neutral. He had to keep his eye out. There must be something triggering him.

"You can read whatever you want. I will key your presence into the child-proof charms to make sure you cannot take any inappropriate books off the shelves. You certainly don't need to be reading about how to dismember your opponent." Severus grinned slightly as Harry's eyes lit up in amusement at that.

"How does that work, sir? How do I know what I am not allowed to read?"

"Don't worry about it. The charm has already been set up to my wishes. You will not be physically able to remove books from the shelves that I have not approved for you to read. That takes any guesswork you might have away."

Harry nodded appreciatively at that. Severus pushed away his empty plate and all the dishes disappeared with a pop.

"Now Harry, I think we need to talk a bit more about how this is all going to work. You must have some questions?" Severus asked. Harry fidgeted nervously for a few moments before sucking in a deep breath and looking Severus in the eye.

"Why do you hate me?" the child asked bluntly.

"I- I don't hate you, child! I admit, you may not be my favourite student, but I do not hate you." Severus sputtered, taken aback at the question.

"Yes, you do! You hate me! You've hated me since I got to Hogwarts. You hated me before you even met me. I saw you glaring at me at the opening feast and in my first potions lesson. You hate me!" Harry's breath heaved as he ranted and after he was done he shrunk down in his chair, expecting punishment for being so outspoken.

Severus put his face in his hands and rubbed his temples.

Oh Severus, what have you done? He thought dismally.

"I don't hate you, Harry. I have not treated you very well, and I am truly sorry for that. I took my frustrations with the past out on you, child, and that was not right. You see, your father and I did not get along while we were in school. I hated him for a very long time, as he hated me. Your mother and I used to be friends until I did some very foolish things, and then she got together with your father, and it made me hate him even more. And then your parents passed away, and you lived, and you came to Hogwarts, the very image of the man I once hated and I couldn't help but not like you. It was very foolish of me. I am starting to realize how foolish I really was. You are like your father in so many ways, but you are also like your mother. I am so very sorry child, for the way I treated you, but I assure you that I will never treat you like that again. I promise."

"Why can't I be just Harry?" the child huffed. "Everyone always compares me to mum and dad. But I never knew them. I'm just me, just Harry. Why can't you decide whether or not you like just me? Not based on what went on with you and mum, or you and dad?"

Severus chuckled and looked at the small child before him in amazement. Harry was truly more intelligent than he had ever given him credit for.

"That sounds good to me, just Harry. How about we make a truce? We forget about the past and start over. No more greasy dungeon bat, or arrogant golden boy?"

Severus was not expecting Harry's response and almost tipped over in his chair as Harry launched himself at his professor and wrapped his arms around his middle in a hug. Severus barely had time to react and pat the boy's back awkwardly before Harry leapt back and sat in his chair, grinning.

Severus straightened out his robes before raising an eyebrow at the young child.

"Now, do you have any practical questions, you foolish boy?"

"Well… I guess I don't really understand what is going on. I- I don't have to go back to the Dursley's, right?"

"You will never go back there, child. You will never be hurt by them again."

"But I don't get it! They are my guardians! But, you said you were now." Harry huffed in frustration. It was hard to believe that just yesterday, he had been at his relative's house. It felt like it was weeks ago.

"Albus is going to be sending me some documents as soon as he can that I will take over to the Dursley's and they will sign them, giving up all rights to be your guardians. I will sign another set of documents, which will be filed discreetly in the Ministry, that place me as your legal guardian."

"Will anything happen to them?"

"Unfortunately, because of the complicated nature of you being the boy-who-lived, everything has to be done as confidentially as possible. If we were to press charges, the Ministry would get involved, and this whole thing would go public. That would compromise your safety, as there are still supporters of the Dark Lord out there who want to harm you. I'm sorry, child."

Severus could be wrong, but he swore he saw a flash of relief behind Harry's eyes before the boy clamped down on his emotions.

"That's okay sir."

"Any other questions?"

"What about rules, sir?"

"Rules? Are you trying to figure out the most efficient way to break them all?" Severus smirked slightly, and the boy grinned cheekily at him before looking down at his feet.

"I just don't want to make you mad, sir."

"Look at me, Harry" Severus waited until his green eyes met his own brown ones reluctantly. "What do you think is going to happen if you make me mad?"

Harry immediately dropped his gaze.

"You'll punish me" he mumbled. Severus reached for the boy and only paused briefly when Harry flinched back. He gently pushed under the boy's chin, forcing his gaze up again.

"Harry, no matter how mad you make me, I guarantee you will never endure any of the punishments that are going through your head right now. You know me better than to expect no consequences, but those consequences will be more along the lines of writing lines, or going to bed early, or loss of privileges. Understood?" Severus said gently, but Harry only looked at him warily. "You will never be starved, or beaten. I will never lay a hand on you, child. No one will ever lay a hand on you again."

Severus saw hope flicker in the boy's eyes before he once again pulled away and pushed back his emotions.

"But since you asked, we should probably go over the rules. I expect you to be polite and respectful to everyone, you will be honest with me at all times, you will be at every meal, and you will keep your room tidy. You will let me know if you are going outdoors and you will stay in the boundaries, which I will show you this afternoon. As a general courtesy, there will be no post sent out after 7pm even though you do have your own owl. I expect you to be in your room by 9pm and in bed by 9:30. That time may be extended by an hour on weekends. As I don't believe you've started any of your summer assignments, you will dedicate three hours a day to homework, more if I deem you are not productive enough. Any questions?"

"But, sir! What about chores? How will I earn my keep?" Harry seemed genuinely concerned about this. It all seemed much too simple to him. Eat every meal? Keep a tidy room? Those weren't really rules.

"There will be none of that child. You do not need to earn your keep. I took you in, voluntarily. I am the adult, and you are a child. You are supposed to have fun with your summer. We have several house elves here who help out with the cleaning and cooking and gardening. Your room will be your responsibility, but that's it. Of course, you will be expected to pick up after yourself, but nothing more than that."

Harry just shook his head, still not entirely wrapping his mind around these strange new rules.

"What about Ron and Hermione? Can they know about any of this?"

Severus hesitated at that. They were his friends after all.

"I- I think it would be best for now if they didn't know. Let's let everything settle and make sure there are no problems with the process before anyone knows. One set of loose lips is all it takes to compromise your safety, Harry."

Harry just nodded. He wasn't even that upset about the decision. If Harry told them he was here, he would have to explain why he was here, and that was not an enticing prospect.

"How about I take you around the grounds and show you where everything is? We can talk more outside if you have any questions." Severus said with a smile.

Harry jumped up enthusiastically and followed his professor out of the Manor.

The rest of the day passed reasonably smoothly. Snape showed Harry the gates at the South end of the property and several storage sheds and a half dozen greenhouses to the east. Harry was only allowed in the first and third one though, the others had plants that were too dangerous for him to be around unsupervised. Then there was the orchard to the north that Harry had seen from his window, and Snape confirmed the presence of a stream going through it. The last side of the property held nothing but a vast expanse of lawn. Eventually, it came to an end at a treeline way off in the distance.

The rest of the day passed by uneventfully, with only a few snide comments from Snape, and two mumbled insults from Harry. Harry entertained himself wandering around the house, exploring the orchard (but he didn't go very far, as Snape had instructed), talking to Aunt Elly and listening to the wizarding radio in the living room.

9:15 found Snape wandering toward the living room, once again following the sound of voices. Severus paused in the entryway and smiled slightly at the sight before him. Harry was laying with his head dangling over the edge of the couch, his feet thrown over the back, as he talked to Eliza. His hands waved wildly above him as he excitedly recreated a play-by-play of one of his Quidditch matches. Eliza smiled down at Harry indulgently, nodding at all the right parts. It was a few minutes before Harry paused to take a breath, and Snape could interject.

"I dare say, Mr. Potter, you do know how to tell the time, don't you?"

Harry spun around so fast that it was amazing he didn't fall off the couch. He glanced up at the clock on the wall and frowned.

"I'm sorry-"

"Hush, child. Hurry along upstairs now and get ready for bed. I still expect you to be in bed by 9:30. There are pyjamas on your bed that you may use until we get yours." he smiled slightly, to assure the boy he wasn't in trouble. Harry said a quick goodnight to the portrait and practically ran down the hall, past Snape. Eliza chuckled in her frame.

"I like that one, Severus dear. Make sure you are good to him."

Severus rolled his eyes and bid her goodnight as well, following the exuberant boy more slowly. By the time he got upstairs, Harry was already dressed and sitting under the covers. Severus flicked his wand and the window curtains closed and the lamps dimmed. He made his way over to the bed and sat near Harry's feet.

"So, I just received the documents from the Headmaster. That was much faster than I expected, that's for sure. I am going to go over to your relative's house to get them signed in the morning. I figure that would be a good time for you to get all of your belongings. Would you like to come with me? Don't worry, you will never be alone with them, and they won't be able to hurt you."

"I think that would be okay," Harry said quietly.

"Okay good. We will leave after breakfast. You may wake up whenever, but breakfast is served at 9, and I expect you to be showered and ready for the day. There should be an alarm clock in the drawer there. Goodnight, Harry." Severus patted Harry's foot and got up to leave the room. "I'm just down the hall if you need anything at all. Don't hesitate to come to get me."

"G'night sir" Harry murmured sleepily, already sinking down into the soft sheets.

oOoOOoOo

_Harry watched in horror as the glass slipped between his trembling fingers. The glass hit the tile with an impossibly loud shatter, and glass shards and milk flew everywhere. His breathing picked up as he ran to grab the paper towel to clean up the mess in the dark kitchen. His heart dropped as he heard heavy footsteps come down the stairs. Suddenly the world was impossibly bright as the light flicked on overhead. He didn't even have time to cringe before a beefy hand grabbed him by the hair and lifted him off the ground._

_"You ungrateful freak! What the bloody hell do you think you are doing?!"_

_"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Please, sir! I'll be good! Please…" he cried out as he was thrown to the ground, his hand sliced open from a shard of glass._

_"Good? GOOD?! You will never be good you stupid freak. You are a waste of space. You should be grateful for everything we do for you, and this is how you repay us? By stealing from us? I'll teach you what happens to greedy little thieves in this house, freak!"_

_Terror gripped him, as Uncle slowly pulled his belt from the loops and reached down for him. Roughly grabbing him by the arm and throwing him over the counter, the edge digging painfully into his stomach as his feet dangled off the floor._

_"Please! I promise I'll be good! Please don't…" His pleading turned to sobs as he felt his shirt being raised, baring his back. The first lash sounded like a gunshot and burned like fire._

Severus was jarred awake sometime around two in the morning. He laid in bed for a moment, groggily trying to figure out what woke him up, when he heard a shout coming from down the hall. Severus immediately jumped out of bed and grabbing his wand, ran down the hall to young Harry's room. He pushed open the door and made his way over to the bed.

Harry was trashing around like he was in pain, whimpers making their way through his lips. Severus placed a hand on the boys back, but he jumped away violently from the contact.

"Please, Uncle! I'll be good! I promise…. Please s _top…"_

Severus growled angrily under his breath, both at those miserable excuses for human beings, and at himself.

How in the bloody hell did I not think to give the boy a dreamless sleep potion?

Harry cried out again, and Severus gently shook his shoulder, ignoring the boys flinch.

"Come now, Harry. It's just a dream. You're safe now. Wake up, Harry." Severus continued speaking softly to the boy, who had calmed down and opened his eyes. He looked around wildly before his eyes settled on Severus. At that moment, he curled in on himself, and sobs began rocking his body.

Moving on instinct alone, Severus sat gently on the edge of the bed and ran his hand up and down the boys back, murmuring soothing words to the distraught boy. After a few minutes, Harry rolled over and, still sobbing, curled his body closer to the professor, his head as close to him as possible without actually resting on his lap.

Eventually, his sobs slowed into just tears and after a few more minutes, even those subsided, until all that was left were a few sniffles. Severus still kept his arm around the boy, letting him get whatever comfort he needed.

"Do you want to talk about it, Harry? It will help," Snape offered gently. Harry just shuddered and shook his head, his eyes drooping shut.

"Okay then, but if you are going back to sleep, drink this please. It will help keep any nightmares away." Severus quickly summoned the vial and helped Harry sit up so he could swallow it. The child was asleep again before his head even hit the pillow.

Severus stood up and made his way to the door. Not that he would admit it to anyone, but he stood there for almost half an hour, just to assure himself that his ward was going to be okay through the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you very much for all of the kudos and to MarvelMakesMeFeelThings for your review!  
> Drop me a review and let me know what you guys think! :)


	4. Dursley's

**August 4, 1993**

Harry awoke the next morning with a feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach. He wondered why as he stretched his hand towards the bedside table and grabbed his glasses, sliding them onto his face. The reason hit him quickly, and he moaned as he pulled the covers over his head. The Dursley's. He was going back to them today.

 _No!_ Harry thought suddenly. _I'm not going back to them. Snape wouldn't leave him there, right? Maybe he realized what a burden I am._

Harry thought uncomfortably about last night. He had woken Snape up with his silly dream and practically cried into the man's lap. What an idiot! Snape would definitely realize his mistake now, and this was probably a trick so Harry wouldn't put up a fuss about going back to that house.

Harry sat up with a determined look on his face. He would show Snape that he wouldn't be as much of a burden as usual. He could be kind of useful around the house, and maybe Snape would keep him.

Jumping out of bed, Harry pulled on the clothes he wore yesterday and glanced at the clock beside his bed. It was only 5:15, so that gave him plenty of time to make himself useful. Maybe he could find some cleaning supplies somewhere. Aunt Petunia kept hers in a cupboard by the kitchen, so Harry decided to look there first. The only problem was that he hadn't seen a kitchen yet. He would just have to look for it.

He silently crept into the dark hallway and held his breath as he passed Snape's bedroom. Harry made his way down to the main floor and looked around indecisively. Where would the kitchen be? Did wizards even have proper kitchens?

After looking around, Harry noticed a narrow door to the right of the staircase. He opened it and walked down the hallway it revealed, and smiled when it did indeed open into a large kitchen. There was a table in the corner directly in front of Harry, and large picture windows that looked out towards the orchard took up the back wall. Counters wrapped around two of the walls and a pantry took up most of the third wall. Beside the pantry was another door, and Harry was delighted to find that it revealed exactly what he was looking for. Shelves covered every inch of available wall space and made rows in the middle of the room. There were linens and rags, mops and brooms and pails, and many containers, which upon closer inspection were the wizard equivalent to cleaning chemicals.

Harry decided that he was going to start in the foyer. Aunt Petunia did always say that when a guest first walked into your home, they would judge you off of what they first saw and therefore the entryway always had to be perfectly spotless.

Grabbing a pail, some rags, the broom and the bottle of glass cleaning potion, Harry set out. He filled the bucket with water from the kitchen, added the cleaner, and dragged everything back to the foyer.

An hour later, Harry had swept the entirety of the foyer and grand staircase and had finished washing both inside and outside of the four large windows (he found out he could reach the very tops if he balanced precariously on the thin window ledge).

He dragged the heavy pail back inside and shook out his wrist. He had hurt it a bit when he had slipped off of the ledge of the last window. Glancing worriedly at the lightening sky outside the windows, he returned his supplies and searched for floor cleaner and a scrub brush and set to work again.

He was almost done scrubbing the floors when Snape found him at nearly 8 o'clock, his arms trembling from exhaustion and his back and knees aching.

"Potter! What the bloody hell are you doing?" Snape barked, staring bewildered at the boy sitting at the bottom of the stairs.

Harry looked up uncertainly. Snape didn't seem pleased… Maybe he did it wrong? He looked around searching for his error, but to him, the foyer seemed pretty good. The windows sparkled in the morning sunlight, and the floors shone. Maybe he was supposed to have had breakfast ready by now? He didn't think it was quite 9 yet.

"Ummm… cleaning, sir?" Harry mumbled, pushing his sweaty fringe away from his eyes.

Snape pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to keep his voice level.

"And why would you be doing that?" he asked, making his way down the stairs.

"I didn't realize it was so late! I'm sorry! I'll go make breakfast now. It will be done really fast, I promise!" Harry rushed out, jumping to his feet and reached for the pail. He couldn't suppress the flinch as a hand wrapped around his shoulder, and he tore himself out of the potion master's grip.

"Harry, child, what part of no chores did you not understand?" Severus spoke gently, but he couldn't keep the slight edge of annoyance out of his voice. He should have known better than to think that everything would go as smoothly as they did yesterday. It would be a long time until Harry forgot all of the painful lessons at the hands of his relatives.

Harry mumbled something under his breath.

"Speak up, boy!"

Harry flinched again and flicked his eyes up to meet Severus'.

"I was trying to be useful,"

"You don't need to be useful. You are a child." Severus stated, rolling his eyes.

"No, I'm a freak and a burden. That's why you are taking me back, right?"

Severus felt there should be some sort of heat to Harry's words, but they were just empty. To Harry, these weren't words meant to be insulting, they were just a fact. Severus knelt down next to the boy and looked him in the eyes as he spoke.

"You are not a freak Harry, nor a burden. And I am not sending you back to live with your relatives. I swear to you, I'm not. You don't even have to come with me if that makes you more comfortable. You can tell me what belongings you want back, and I can find them while I am there."

"Promise?" Harry asked dubiously. He obviously didn't trust Severus to keep his word.

"Promise. Now, would you rather I go alone? You may stay here with Quinly to look after you for a few hours."

"I- I think I want to go. You might not be able to find everything."

"If you're sure. Now go shower please, and get ready for breakfast. I'll meet you down here," Severus stood up and pushed Harry lightly towards the stairs.

"Yes, sir."

"And Potter?" Severus waited for Harry to turn around. "You are not a burden. I would not have accepted to take you as a ward if I wasn't completely willing to provide for you. You are not a slave here, alright?"

Harry smiled at him uncertainly before turning quickly and scampering up the stairs.

oOoOOoOo

An hour and a half later, found a very nervous 13-year-old standing close to an older man, both staring at the impeccably neat house that used to be Harry's home. Severus looked down at the boy that would soon be officially his charge. Harry was trembling slightly, and his oversized clothes only made him look more pathetic. Hopefully, the boy had better fitting clothing inside. He crouched down to look the boy in the eye.

"It will be okay Harry. I'm not going to let you out of my sight, and I won't let them harm you. I really need you to try to keep control though, alright? We can't afford any accidental magic. Not alerting the ministry is key to keeping you safe right now, and any accidental magic will bring a ministry agent to investigate."

 _That means I also cannot blast these damned muggles into more pieces than poor Peter Pettigrew_ , Severus thought wryly.

Harry nodded, looking at the ground. His throat felt too tight to answer verbally. With a sigh, Severus placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, ignoring the flinch, and led him to the front door. Knocking firmly, he waited impatiently for it to open.

After a few moments, the door was pulled open to reveal the figure of an enormous man, who Severus assumed was Harry's uncle. The man's beady eyes focussed right on his trembling nephew, completely missing the man glaring at him.

Vernon's eyes narrowed as he glared at the boy, an angry flush working its way up his neck.

"Finally realized what was good for you boy? I'm going to make you wish you never even thought of disobeying me."

He reached to grab Harry, who flinched backwards but was stopped as he ran into something solid. The hand never reached him though, as a pale hand was gripping Vernon's forearm, stopping him in his tracks. Vernon tried to pull his arm away from the painfully tight grip and turned his glare to the hand's owner.

"Who the bloody hell do you think you are?" Vernon spat.

Severus stepped around Harry and pulled his wand out, his anger bubbling dangerously close to the surface.

"I think we should move this discussion inside," Severus suggested, his voice icy and quiet. Harry shuddered behind the potions master. He knew from experience that that tone never boded well for whoever it was directed at.

Vernon shrunk away from the stick pointed at him and scampered back so quickly that he almost tripped over his own feet. If Harry weren't so terrified, he might have smiled at the sight. Severus motioned the boy to follow him into the house, always keeping his wand pointed at the fat man before him.

"Get your wife and come into the sitting room. We need to have a discussion."

"Vernon? Who's at the-" Petunia came around the corner, wiping her hands on her apron. "You! Get out. You are not welcome in this house! And you, boy! You have a lot of nerve showing your face here after what you did. You get to your room this instant!"

Harry flinched and moved like he was about to follow her order, eyes trained on the floor. Severus laid a gentle hand on his shoulder and pulled the boy closer to his side.

"Now Tuney, is that any way to treat your guests? I have much we need to talk about, so why don't we sit down in the living room?"

He motioned for them to go ahead of him, which they did warily, never taking their eyes off of the wand pointed in their direction. After they were all seated, Severus pulled out a stack of official looking parchment and placed it on the coffee table in front of the Dursleys.

"What's this?" Vernon demanded gruffly.

"Those are documents that say you give up all rights you have as guardians to Harry,"

"And why would I do that?"

"Because, you spineless waste of oxygen, I will not allow Harry to continue to endure abuse at your hands and the only options I have are to get you to sign these papers…" Severus' icy voice trailed off, and he fixed the man with a cold glare. "I suppose Harry would also be placed with other guardians if his current ones were to be brutally murdered in their home… Some raving muggle lunatic on the loose."

"Are you threatening us?" Petunia shrieked just as her husband leapt to his feet, face purple with anger. Vernon only had eyes for Harry, who was visibly shaking in his seat.

"ABUSE?! What has this freak been telling you?! He has always been treated as he deserved here. We did not abuse him. We gave him a home, clothes, food. What more did the greedy freak want? He should be thankful for everything we did for him-" Vernon spluttered in rage, becoming incomprehensible as he babbled on.

Severus' wand, which had been sitting loosely in his folded hands, once again pointed to the Dursley patriarch.

"Silence! You are the one who should be thankful for the boy's presence right now. The boy does not need to see any more violence." Vernon paled at that. "Now, if you will kindly sign the papers and let us gather Harry's belongings, we will be on our way without any trouble."

Vernon looked like he was about to say something, but Petunia placed a hand on his arm to stop him.

"Vernon, dear. Let's just sign the papers. We can be rid of the freak forever. He won't spoil our family anymore."

Vernon's glare flickered between Severus and Harry for a few minutes before he sat down with a huff, and picked up the pen that Severus had lain down. He scribbled his signature and looked back up to the scared boy.

"This isn't for you boy. It's for us. We don't need you or your freakishness around anymore."

Severus grabbed the papers and put them back in his robes.

"Come along, Harry. You can show me to your room, and we will gather all your things."

Harry stood up but shied away from Severus. He led them into the hallway and stopped by the cupboard under the stairs. Severus considered the locked door for a moment, trying to settle his bubbling anger.

"Is this your bedroom?"

"No, sir. Well not anymore. But this is where all of my school stuff is. And my trunk." Harry murmured quietly. Severus looked over the boy worriedly. He hadn't stopped shaking since they had arrived, and he looked like he might explode with all the tension in his body. Severus had to concentrate on keeping his anger down again, as he really didn't want Harry to fear him more than he already seemed to.

"I see. Well, magic isn't an option to open this…"

Severus inspected the lock before giving it a hard tug. The latch gave away easily, not really meant to be secured to drywall or flimsy cupboard doors. They quickly gathered Harry's trunk and broom and piled it by the front door.

Severus kept his face blank as Harry once again led him up the stairs, always staying at least an arm's length away from Severus, and came to a stop outside another door with locks on it. This one had multiple locks and deadbolts lining the side, but thankfully they were all unlocked.

"Your room?" Severus raised his eyebrow at the boy, and he just nodded and blushed.

Severus pushed the door open and looked around. It was mostly bare, except for a bed, wardrobe, desk and a collection of old and broken toys which he assumed had once belonged to the cousin.

Harry immediately went to the desk and closed the door to the birdcage, setting it on his bed. He looked uncertainly towards Severus.

"Well, come on, child. Gather anything you want to take with us. We won't be coming back. Where are your clothes?"

Harry opened the doors to his wardrobe, and Severus saw a dismal collection of clothing. There were only three other shirts, a sweater and a pair of jeans, all of which are many sizes too large for the small boy.

"We will stop at a clothing store on the way home. Unless you have an attachment to these, leave them. Is there anything else?" Severus asked gently. He watched in amusement as the boy's eyes glanced subconsciously under the bed.

"Go on. Like I said, we won't be coming back, so anything you hid in your room you should take now."

This brought a small smile to the child's face, and Severus felt a wave of relief. He didn't realize how much it truly upset him to see the boy so terrified.

Harry quickly knelt beside the bed and pried up a loose floorboard. He pulled out what looked like a scrapbook, a bundle of letters and cards, and a few books and boxes that appeared to be gifts from his friends. He also hesitated before pulling out a tiny collection of, what seemed to be, toy soldiers. They looked very old, most of the paint had chipped away, and a few were missing parts of their limbs.

When Harry saw Severus eyeing them, he blushed and shoved them under the small stack of items on the bed.

"Is that everything?"

"Yes, sir."

"Well then, lets put all of this in your trunk and take it home." Severus smiled at the boy, but all he got back was a suspicious stare. With a sigh, he grabbed the owl cage and let Harry gather all of his cherished belongings in his arms.

When they reached the front entrance, Harry quickly shoved everything into his trunk and snapped the lid closed.

The Dursley's were still standing in the middle of the sitting room, eyeing them with distaste.

"Now, you promised I never have to see the boy again! When you get fed up with his freakishness, I will not have the brat dumped on my doorstep again, you hear me?"

"I assure you, you vile muggle, you will never be permitted the pleasure of being around Mr. Potter again. I would just be happy that I am not coming with charges against you."

Petunia turned up her nose at that statement and turned on her heel and made her way out of the room.

"Quinly!" Severus called, and turned to face the elf who had popped into the room. "Please take Mr. Potter's belongings to his room. He can unpack as he sees fit after we go shopping."

The elf gave a bow and gathered the cage and broom in his arms, placing a hand on the trunk, before disapparating away. When Severus glanced back into the sitting room, Vernon was gone. He sighed again and opened the door, motioning the boy through. He was sad to notice that Harry still skirted around him, making sure he was out of reach at all times.

 _Stop being so scared child!_ He wanted to shout. _Don't you realize I'm not going to hurt you? You never have to fear your guardians again._

Severus shook his head sadly and followed Harry down the front lawn and gripped his shoulder to apparate them to London.

oOoOOoOo

Harry sighed as he sat stiffly down on his bed. He was exhausted, and it wasn't even supper time. Severus had sent him upstairs to put away his ridiculous amount of new clothes and have a nap before dinner.

As much as Harry had argued during the trip to the huge department store in London, Snape was not to be dissuaded from buying too many clothes, and it made Harry uncomfortable. It was just more stuff that he had to pay back Snape for, and more reasons that he was a burden. Harry had finally given up arguing and stayed quiet when Snape had finally snapped at Harry. He had told him that it was his duty as guardian to make sure Harry was well looked after, and having properly fitting clothes was an essential part of that.

He surveyed the sheer number of bags sitting on the floor in front of his wardrobe before reluctantly standing up to start putting them all away. He now had eight new t-shirts, three long sleeves, two collared shirts, four sweaters, five pairs of jeans, three pairs of shorts, a pair of dress pants, seven pairs of pyjama pants, new trainers and a pair of dress shoes, as well as dozens of socks and underwear. It really was all too much. He did just fine with his clothes before.

The trip wasn't all bad though. They had stopped at a muggle restaurant before going to the department store to grab some lunch, and the professor had pulled out another stack of parchment, putting it on the table between them. He explained that they were the guardianship papers he was signing to gain guardianship over Harry, and since Harry was old enough to begin formal wizarding education, he could also sign the papers. It was not necessary, but would speed up the process and ensure that Harry was placed with Severus before anyone could intervene. Harry had signed them after only slight hesitation and Snape had grinned at him before putting the papers away again.

Harry smiled to himself as he finished hanging his shirts. It was definitely a relief that he was officially away from the Dursley's. Now he just had to make sure Snape didn't change his mind like Aunt Petunia said.

After all of the new clothes were put away, and the bags were neatly folded on his desk, Harry fell into a fitful sleep on his bed. He didn't even bother to get under the covers.

He was woken an hour later by someone shaking his shoulder gently. He instinctively jumped away from the hand and looked up to see Professor Snape looking down at him.

"Come along, Harry, it's dinner time. I would have let you sleep, but you really need to get some meat on your bones."

"Yes sir" Harry mumbled, climbing sleepily off the bed. Snape paused in the doorway and turned to face him.

"You know, I really do appreciate that you are so surprisingly respectful, but we are not in school or class, and you are not in trouble. I am your guardian now, there is no need to keep calling me sir. How about…" Snape trailed off, seeming unsure. "Just call me Severus while we are at home, okay? In public, it is most certainly still Professor Snape."

"Yes, sir."

Severus sighed. And so began a very long few days. Harry was unnervingly polite, but he was also incredibly tense. The only time he saw Harry relax at all was when he was talking to Eliza in the living room. Well, until the boy noticed Severus was there, then he tensed up again. He followed every rule, waking up on time and spending the mornings catching up on his school work without so much as a single complaint. Even when he was free to play or explore, Harry would sit stiffly in his room, looking out his window or wander aimlessly through the house. Harry had yet to unpack any of the things in his trunk, and while he was not completely silent, he would only carry on a conversation after Severus prodded him with multiple questions. The only times he let Severus close to him were after he woke up from his nightmares.

It was, quite frankly, getting on Severus' last nerve. No child was this well behaved! He had tried to get through to the child that he was safe and cared for and that this was his home now. It bothered him to think that Harry was truly unhappy here.

So finally on Wednesday, the third day after their visit to the Dursley's, Severus was desperate enough to send a letter to the Headmaster asking for advice. He hated doing it, but he was at a loss as to how to get the boy to feel more comfortable in his own home.

It was late in the evening, after Harry was already asleep, that Severus got his reply.

_Severus,_

_My dear boy, I am so glad that you have come to me. I gather that the two of you are getting along somewhat better and that is fantastic! You will be happy to know as well, that I have just received notice that all forms have been processed and Harry is now officially your ward. There is nothing anyone can do about it at this point, save for yourself._

_As to your issues with Harry, are you sure that you have tried to make him feel as comfortable as possible? Remember he is not one of your little snakes. Does he really feel at home, or does he feel like a little lion in a den of snakes?_

_Just something to think about. My advice is to continue trying to communicate with him. Help him work through his issues. Don't push him too hard. He always did need a bit more time adjusting to situations._

_I trust your judgement with the boy, and you are his guardian, so I am not going to tell you what to do. Trust your instincts._

_Cheers,_

_Albus_

Severus growled in frustration. How dare the old coot imply that he was not trying his hardest to make things work with Potter? Of course, he was a true Slytherin (as were many of the Prince's) and the house reflected that, but there was nothing to be done about that. Or was there…?

Snape growled again and crumpled up the letter. He was too tired to think about this right now. He would never have guessed that trying to make one damned little boy happy would be so exhausting. This would have to be a problem for tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a bit shorter than usual but hopefully, you still enjoy it. Let me know what you think by leaving me a review! 
> 
> Until next week! <3 sincerityessential


	5. Gifts

**August 5, 1993**

"Harry?"

Harry jerked back to attention and blushed when he realized he had been idly playing with his breakfast and not paying attention to anything for the past several minutes. He tried hard to stifle another yawn. He had woken up yet again from nightmares last night. He knew that the potion that Snape tried to get him to take every night might help, but he couldn't make himself drink it. It wasn't that he didn't trust Snape but….. Well, maybe he didn't trust him. His Aunt had made him drink vile things that always seemed to make him sicker.

He felt a small wriggling of guilt in his stomach. Snape looked just as exhausted as he felt. No matter how quickly he stifled his yells upon waking up, Snape always came into the room just seconds after. Just another way he was a burden.

"Yes, sir?" Harry asked miserably.

"Its Severus, Harry" Snape corrected, just like every other time Harry called him sir.

"Yes, S-Severus?"

"I need to go out to run some errands this morning. Will you be alright here by yourself for a while? I will probably be back before you are done your homework and Quinly will be here if you need anything."

Harry stared at him in confusion. Being left alone? The Dursley's would never have allowed that. They were too afraid that Harry would destroy the house while they were out. But Snape seemed more concerned with getting Harry's permission to go. Maybe this was some sort of test?

"Yes, sir. I promise I won't touch anything. You don't have to worry about me. I won't even leave my room. Promise!"

Severus smiled at the boy and shook his head.

"I know you will behave, Harry. I just want to make sure you are comfortable here alone. The house can be quite lonely when it is only you here."

"I-I'll be okay."

"If you are sure. If you need me to come back for any reason, Quinly can come to fetch me. Are you done eating?"

Harry nodded and stiffened when Severus frowned at him.

"Harry, you barely ate anything. I know your stomach is small, but you really need to try to eat more. This is really unhealthy. I think I'm going to start you on some nutrition potions. The last thing I need is for the Boy Who Lived to die in my home from malnutrition."

"I'm sor-"

"Hush, child. If you are really done, then why don't you get started on some homework? I'll send Quinly up with a snack later. I'll be back in about two hours or so."

Harry nodded and quickly exited the dining room before Snape could decide he was more displeased with his eating habits.

In his room, he quickly pulled out his potions textbook and the parchment he had started his essay. Or tried to start, more specifically. He had been working on this particular assignment since Monday and had only a few crumpled sheets of parchment to show for it.

Why did Snape have to always give such complicated assignments? Especially over the holidays! Harry huffed in frustration and looked at the assignment instructions again.

 _Write a three-foot essay detailing the different classifications of potions we have discussed up until this point in time, providing an explanation for each and describe how they differ from each other. Provide an example of one potion from each group, and explain its effects. This assignment is to be handed in by_ 7pm _on September 2nd. Anything late will be given a zero._

How in the bloody hell was he supposed to know these? There was no section in the textbook about this. He would know, he had skimmed through it at least a dozen times in the past few days.

In a grouchy mood now, Harry shoved the book away. He glanced at the clock and sighed when he realized he had only been working for a little over an hour. Maybe there were books in the library that would help? But he had told Severus he would stay in his room while he was gone.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by a knock at the door.

"Come in!"

The door opened, and Quinly came in, balancing a plate of food on his hand.

"Couldn't you just apparate in?" Harry blurted out and then blushed as the elf looked at him reproachfully.

"Quinly be thinking that Mister Harry Potter sir might not like it if Quinly be barging into the room unannounced, sir." He smiled at Harry and placed the plate of fruit on his desk.

"Oh. Well, thank you Quinly. I do appreciate it."

The elf just gave a little bow and started making his way back to the door.

"Master told Quinly that he expects the little Mister Potter to eat all of his snacks, sir." He threw over his shoulder.

Harry scowled but nodded his head. Glancing around the room for anything else to distract him, his gaze fell on a stack of letters next to his bed. Hermione and Ron had been writing to him more and more frequently over the last week or so, but he had yet to open any of them.

He strode over to the bed and brought the stack back to his desk. Ripping open the first one he smiled down at it

_Harry,_

_I hope your birthday wasn't too horrible. Merlin, your Aunt sounds awful! We don't have the flying car anymore, but if things get too bad just let me know. I'm sure between me, Fred and George, we can figure out some way to break you out._

_Mum says to give you her love._

_\- Ron_

 

_Harry,_

_France is absolutely amazing! You would love it here. Did you know there's another wizarding school here? It's called Beauxbatons. I wish we could go see it, but I guess that's the downfall of being muggleborn. Plus, mum and dad are getting tired of all the magic talk I think._

_I hope your Aunt's visit goes okay. Keep your temper, Harry James! It's only a week, and then she's gone. I know you don't mean to cause any problems, but it might be best not to aggravate your relatives._

_If you need anything, let me know!_

_With love,_

_Hermione_

 

_Harry,_

_I know you can't reply much with your Aunt there, but I haven't heard from you in a while. Ron says he hasn't heard from you either. Is everything okay over there?_

_Please slip either Ronald or me a note if you can soon._

_Love,_

_Hermione_

 

_Harry, mate. Hermione is losing her hair over there. Are you okay? Please answer, if not for her sanity, then for mine. She is driving me mad with all the letters she's sending._

_Ron_

 

_Harry James Potter!_

_I am going to assume something is very wrong if you don't at least send me a reply soon. Even just tell me to shut up. That way I know you are okay._

_If you don't answer me by Friday, I am making my parents take me to your house._

_Hermione_

 

Harry felt guilt gnaw its way through his stomach. His friends were truly worried about him. He didn't know what to tell them though. He didn't have to mention anything that happened he supposed… Definitely not Ron. He was his best mate, but he would go bonkers if he knew he was living with Snape. Hermione might understand though.

He took a steadying breath and pulled a piece of parchment and a quill closer to him.

 

_Hermione,_

_I'm really sorry for worrying you and Ron. A lot of stuff happened in the past week… I am safe though. There's just a lot going on right now, and I don't know if I am ready to talk about it._

_But you might be more understanding than Ron. If I can get permission, maybe you could come to visit me for an afternoon? Please don't tell Ron anything. Just let him know I am not dead or anything. I really am fine, I promise._

_When are you back from your trip?_

_\- Harry_

 

Harry quickly re-read his letter to Hermione and chewed on his lip. He felt hesitant in sending it, knowing it would just worry her more. And could he trust her to keep this a secret from Ron? He just knew Ron was going to go ballistic when he found out Snape of all people was his guardian. Harry was interrupted from his thoughts by a sharp knock on the door.

"Hard at work, I see," Severus smirked, walking towards Harry.

Harry jumped and whirled around, knocking the almost empty plate to the floor. He watched in horror as the plate shattered and scattered all over.

"I'm sorry! Oh god. I'm sorry. I'll clean it up. I swear. I promise I will do better! Please.."

Before Snape could stop him, he jumped to the floor and started grabbing the pieces of glass in his shaking hands. He didn't even seem to notice when he clenched his fist, causing pieces of glass to pierce his skin and blood started dripping down his palm.

"Harry! Stop!"

Harry didn't seem to hear him and continued to grab at the glass. Severus hurried to his side and knelt next to the shaking boy. He grabbed Harry by the wrists, and pulled him to his side, ignoring the boys struggling.

"Harry, you need to stop. You're not in trouble. Look!" Snape murmured. He waited until Harry dropped the glass and pulled his wand out of his robes. "Reparo!"

The glass flew together, and seconds later, a whole plate sat on the floor in front of them.

"See, no harm done. Calm down now child."

Severus waited for Harry to stop shaking before he stood up and pulled Harry up to. He pulled the boy's hands towards him and quickly healed the cuts. Harry finally looked up at Severus.

"I'm sorry, sir."

"For what, child? It was an accident, and there was no permanent damage."

"But I broke it!"

"And I startled you. Really, it should be me who is apologizing."

"No! It was my-"

"Stop. You did nothing wrong. But I do think you need a break. You have been so well behaved since you got here. Why don't you skip the rest of your homework today? You haven't flown on your broom since you got here."

"I know. It's just not as fun by myself." Harry murmured, scuffing his toe against the stone floor.

"Yeah, you told me that. I'm sorry it's not as fun without anyone here with you. But you still need to get some fresh air. You can go take your broom out to the orchard and go explore there. As long as you stay in the wards, you can go wherever you want."

"Yes, sir…" Harry started towards the door, grabbing his broom from beside it. He hesitated and looked back at Severus.

"Is there something you need?"

"Well, sir-"

"Severus,"

"Severus. I was wondering… well, maybeIcanhavesomefriendscomevisit" Harry rushed out, not making eye contact.

"Harry. I know you have the ability to correctly use the English language. Try that again."

"Weeeeeell… I was wondering if maybe I can have someone come to visit me."

"Oh. I see. Well, I don't know Harry..." Severus watched Harry's face fall. "But we will talk about it, okay?"

"Yes, sir. I'm sorry."

Harry turned and fled the room before Severus could respond. Severus growled under his breath. Dealing with this boy would be the death of him. But he would make that child happy, no matter what it took. This would be a good start though, he thought.

He got to work quickly; he didn't know how long Harry would be gone for. Fetching the bags from his room, and waving his wand to shift all the furniture away from the walls, Severus read over the instructions of the paint cans.

The charm to apply the paint to the walls was simple enough, and soon enough the walls were a disgusting deep red colour. Perfect for a Gryffindor, he supposed, but it definitely clashed with his own tastes. The lady at the store had assured him anyways, that it was the same colour the school bought to freshen up the paint in the Gryffindor common room. Although the walls were much darker now, it gave the place a cozy feel, which was hard to accomplish with such a large room.

As he let the paint set, he walked over to the bed and murmured another charm over the bedspread, turning it a lighter red colour with gold trim. The curtains around the bed were changed to a very light shade of gold. The curtains on the windows remained black, and the area rug was changed to black and gold instead of black and silver, to keep with the theme of the room.

He flicked his wand and sent the furniture back to its original positions. He looked around the room to see if he missed anything. He spotted the green armchair and quickly changed it to red with another flick of the wand.

Satisfied with the bedroom, he moved into the bathroom. Within minutes, the walls were a pale gold and the towels were all red. Severus smiled to himself as he surveyed his handiwork. He may hate everything about this room, but Harry would like it. He hoped, anyway. Hopefully, this would help Harry feel more like this was his home now. He couldn't help but think that the room still seemed bare though. His eyes landed on Harry's trunk. The boy had yet to unpack any of his belongings.

He hesitantly lifted the lid. He wouldn't snoop through the boy's belongings, but Merlin knew he wasn't going to unpack himself. Severus decided he would put a few things out, and hopefully, Harry would unpack anything else he wanted in his room.

He pulled the pile of textbooks and parchment out of the trunk and placed them on the bookshelf and in the desk, respectively. He added a handful of quills and ink bottles to the other drawer and glanced at the more personal belongings. There was a magical picture of James and Lily in a frame, smiling and waving as James pulled Lily closer to his side, and he wondered why Harry didn't even want that out. He hoped that it wasn't because of him. He shook his head and gently placed the frame on the table next to the side of the bed Harry tended to sleep on.

All of Harry's wizard robes were in a crumpled heap on one side of the trunk, so Severus flicked his wand to hang them in the wardrobe. He decided that Harry could decide what to do with the rest later. He had gotten through the top layer of belongings, and he was getting to things that he didn't recognize. He didn't want Harry to feel like his privacy was invaded. That would do nothing to build trust between them.

Severus glanced out the window and watched as Harry flew in lazy circles above the orchard. Occasionally he would flip upside down and trail his fingers along the leaves. He plucked an apple from a branch and began playing catch by himself. Severus shook his head and turned away. The kid made flying look so effortless. That was definitely something he got from his father.

He gathered up the empty paint cans and the bags from shopping and paused to pull out a box wrapped in green paper. He hesitated before placing it on Harry's desk, next to the discarded homework.

He made his way downstairs and was pleased to see Harry making his way back inside, broom thrown over his shoulder, and a small smile on his face.

"Did you enjoy yourself out there?" Severus asked as Harry came through the living room.

"Yeah! It's still not as fun without anyone else, but I like flying. It's relaxing," Harry said shyly, looking up at Severus through his fringe. "Sorry again about the plate, sir."

Severus just laughed and ruffled Harry's hair. He was pleasantly surprised when Harry laughed too and ducked out from under Severus' hand, not flinching.

"Harry! I thought we went over this. An accidentally broken plate is no big deal. Now, why don't you put your broom away? I- I have a bit of a surprise for you."

Now it was Severus' turn to be nervous. He thought Harry would like it, but he couldn't help but worry that he wouldn't. Harry gave him a puzzled look, slightly worried about what the surprise could be, but he followed Severus' instructions and made his way upstairs. Severus followed close behind and held his breath as Harry pushed open his bedroom door and froze.

Harry's jaw dropped open, and he glanced around in confusion. He stepped back into the hallway and looked both ways, trying to determine if he had accidentally gone into the wrong room. Severus laughed and gently pushed Harry into the room.

"Go on, child. It's yours."

"But…" Harry didn't even finish his protest. He was too busy looking around in amazement. He placed his broom carefully against the wall before walking over to the bed. He trailed his fingers hesitantly over the covers as he took in the room in amazement. Severus leaned against the doorframe and let his ward get over the shock of everything.

Harry's eyes fell on the picture frame by the bed. He quickly picked it up to inspect it. His eyes darted towards the trunk sitting at the end of the bed and then to Severus. His expression was guarded as he looked at his guardian.

"I'm sorry if you feel I invaded your privacy. I assure you I didn't snoop, just took the top layer of your belongings. I want you to feel like this is your home, and you should have pictures of your parents in your home."

Harry averted his gaze and gently placed the frame back. He narrowed his eyes as he surveyed the room again and walked over to the bookcase where his textbooks and broom care book were sitting. Severus watched nervously as the boy approached him, eyes on the floor. The child stopped a few feet away, still not looking at him.

"Are you angry with me?" Severus asked gently.

Before he knew what was happening, Harry had launched himself at the professor and wrapped his arms around his middle in a tight hug. Severus froze, he wasn't used to any sort of physical affection. Even with his snakes, he never had to hand out hugs. Comforting homesick or emotional children was the prefect's jobs. So, before he could respond Harry leapt back again.

"Sorry, sir."

"Don't be sorry, boy. I'm taking that as a sign you like the room?"

"Yeah! Thank you s- Severus. Thank you so much!"

Severus reached out and patted the boy on the shoulder.

"You're welcome, Harry. I do expect you to unpack the rest of your belongings yourself. This is your room, and you don't have to hide away your possessions anymore. I promise they won't be touched."

"Okay… I can look through my trunk later, I suppose."

"Good boy. I do have one more surprise for you too," Severus said nervously. He cleared his throat and motioned towards the wrapped box on the desk. "Now I don't want you to get any ideas about you getting spoiled. You will not be showered in gifts just because you are Albus' golden boy. This is because uh- because you have been so well behaved since you have gotten here, and you're birthday just passed. I figure you didn't get much for presents at the muggle's house."

Harry quirked his eyebrow at the professor and almost laughed when the older man's cheeks turned pink. The truth was, Severus hadn't even remembered that it was Harry's birthday last week until he had already bought the present. Severus had been coming back from Diagon Alley and saw it in the window and had immediately thought of how much Harry would like it. But he wasn't going soft! He had only had the kid here a week. He scowled at the boy again for good measure.

"Don't look at me like that. Go on, open it up."

Shaking his head, Harry picked up the box and carefully peeled the paper back. His face lit up in excitement as he read the curly writing on the box.

"Really? This is for me?" Harry scrutinized his professor, half-expecting him to start laughing and tell Harry it was just a joke. Of course, he wouldn't get a present. Especially because of what a burden he had been so far this week.

"Of course it is!" Severus exclaimed, walking over and opening the box. "See, it's a practice snitch. There are different settings, I'll show you the charms to work it, so you can play by yourself or against someone else. If you take it out to the orchard, you can make the game quite difficult. It will avoid you, and hide in the trees, and everything. And if you are done playing but haven't caught it yet, you just stop the charm, and the snitch will come back to the box."

"That is so cool! Thank you so much, Severus!"

Severus smiled at the boy, especially at his use of his first name. He thought that might have been the first time Harry had used it without stumbling over it.

"It's no problem, child. I must say, I am pleased to see you this happy. I know it's not the same as playing with someone else, but it will keep you occupied."

"I know sir. And I am sorry for bugging you about having friends come to visit. I understand that you wouldn't want more kids running around. I shouldn't have asked." Harry frowned, scuffing the toe of his trainers against the ground as he spoke.

"No, Harry. It's not that, and I don't mind you asking. It's just… I want to keep you safe, Harry! I'm worried about what will happen if the wrong people find out that you are living with me. Some people are still loyal to the Dark Lord that could put both of our lives in danger if they knew. It just takes one pair of loose lips, and you could get hurt."

"But I trust them! They would never tell anyone, even by accident. Anyways, they've already kept much bigger secrets than this before.." Harry trailed off.

Snape narrowed his eyes at the child, but Harry refused to make eye contact. He was staring determinedly at a spot somewhere over Snape's left shoulder. Severus pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.

"Do you understand how serious this is, Harry?"

Harry nodded, still not making eye contact.

"And you trust them?"

Another nod.

"Completely?"

"Yes, sir."

"Well, I guess you can tell them. I can't very well keep you locked up without any company your own age, I suppose. Why don't you invite Ronald for an afternoon?"

"Actually, sir, I was hoping you would let me invite Hermione. If you didn't mind. You don't have to say yes."

"Hermione?" Snape raised his eyebrow at his ward. He knew the three of them were close, but he would have thought that the boy would want his male friend to visit before that girl. But Harry just nodded his head.

"Yeah. I said that I trust them to keep a secret, not that they would be happy about what is going on. Hermione at least will keep her head."

Severus laughed and shook his head.

"I suppose that would be alright then. Why don't you go write her then?"

Harry immediately went to his desk and sorted through the stack of parchment there. He pulled out a sheet and went to where Hedwig was sleeping. He gently nudged her awake, smoothing the feathers on her head down as she screeched at him, irritated at being woken up.

"I'm sorry, girl. Could you take this to Hermione though? I would appreciate it."

The owl nipped affectionately at his fingers before taking the roll of parchment in her talons and taking off. Harry turned and smiled at the professor again.

"Severus, may I go out and play with the snitch? Please?"

Snape rolled his eyes but smirked slightly at the boy.

"Yes, but remember lunch is in an hour, whether you are there or not!"

Harry nodded and hurried to gather the box and broom in his arms. Severus quickly showed Harry the very simple charms that worked as an on and off button. He also explained that the snitch was set to stay within ½ a mile of the box. Harry nodded distractedly through the whole explanation and was out the door as soon as Severus was done.

Severus just shook his head and laughed. Seeing Harry so happy and excited felt like a burden off of his shoulders. He didn't know when it happened, but he had started to care for the boy. Well… if not care for, then at least he no longer hated him. Severus felt a great responsibility for Harry's wellbeing, and that included his happiness.

He was just being a good guardian, Severus told himself. He was just making sure the brat was happy, even if that meant bribing him with silly toys that cost way too much money (the stupid snitch hadn't even been for sale yet. He had had to bully the shopkeeper into selling it to him two weeks before the release date). That was not spoiling the child, though! He just had to keep the boy satisfied before Albus changed his mind and sent him off to Minerva after all. The boy would be spoiled rotten within a week there! No, he was just doing his duty to the wizarding world by making sure their silly saviour didn't turn into a pompous brat.

Severus nodded to himself again, satisfied that he wasn't going soft and he still had his mean reputation intact. Glancing out the window, he even allowed himself a smile at the sight of Potter running across the yard to the orchard. Perhaps this would be the start of better things to come for the young boy.


	6. Friends

**August 6, 1993**

The next day and a half went by quickly, and Harry was surprised to find himself genuinely happy. He wasn't used to feeling this way until a week or so after returning to Hogwarts when he got to spend time with his friends and heal from whatever his Uncle had put him through before dropping him off at the station.

Harry had also managed to sleep through the night for the first time since coming to Snape Manor. Being well rested definitely helped with everyone's mood, and helped Harry to relax a bit. Severus had spent the whole day on Friday in his potions lab. He told Harry that he was brewing some potions for the infirmary at Hogwarts, as well as a batch of nutrient potion for Harry to begin taking. The thought of taking something from Snape made his stomach churn, but Harry pushed the idea aside. Severus hadn't tried to poison him yet, so he may as well not worry about it for now.

It was nearing Friday evening when Harry trudged back from the orchard, broom over his shoulder. He had spent every moment he could outside today, playing with his new snitch. It was actually quite fun, he had decided. Although, his shoulder did ache a lot now. The snitch had begun weaving between the trees in the orchard and Harry pursued it at full speed. He had had to swerve suddenly when two trees grew too close together, and he didn't notice until the last moment. He had tumbled off of his broom, and although he was only about four feet above the ground, it had quite hurt when he hit the ground.

Harry pulled open the door to the living room but paused as he saw Hedwig fly around the side of the house with a letter clutched in her beak. She landed on his shoulder and nipped his ear affectionately before taking off and flying through his bedroom window, probably to sleep on her perch in there.

Excited, Harry tore open the envelope and pulled out a sheet of paper with Hermione's looping writing on it.

_Harry,_

_Thank god you are okay! You really had me worried. Although, your letter didn't give me much reason to feel better. What in the world is going on that you can't tell Ron about?_

_You better have more explanations for me, Harry. I didn't say anything to Ron, just that you had been really busy and couldn't get a letter to either of us until now. I don't like lying though._

_We are flying back to London tonight. I asked my parents, and though they aren't too happy with me going off so soon after vacation, they say I can visit for the afternoon on Sunday. Would that work for you and the Dursley's? I must say, I am shocked they are letting you have a friend from school over. I kind of got the impression that they don't really like the whole magic thing._

_Well, let me know if that is okay with you. And I really am glad you are okay, Harry. Please don't scare me like that again._

_With love,_

_Hermione_

Harry smiled down at the letter as he absentmindedly closed the door behind him. Hermione really did worry too much for her own good. He was fine, after all.

"What are you smiling at, child? You would think you got a love letter by that goofy grin on your face!"

Harry blushed bright red before glancing over at Aunt Elly. She had that little smile on her face that she got when she was teasing him, so he just stuck his tongue out at her and fixed a scowl on his face.

"It's not a love letter! I'm thirteen Aunt Elly! For Merlin's sake… It's from Hermione, remember I told you about her and Ron? She said that she can come to visit on Sunday!"

"You are spending too much time with Severus, dear. You scowl just like him now" Aunt Elly chuckled. "But that will be lovely. I'm sure you will enjoy the company."

"Yeah! Severus is okay for company, at least he doesn't look as mean at me anymore, but I miss my friends. At least when I was with the Dursley's, I could go watch the other kids play around the playground. But I should go wash up for supper. No use to get Severus mad at me before I ask him for something. I'll come to visit you later!"

Aunt Elly laughed again and waved at the small child before he hurried out of the room. Harry raced down the hallway and took the stairs two at a time. He almost ran into Severus as he rounded the corner on the second floor.

"Whoa, there! Slow down, boy. You can get places in this house without running around like a buffoon. Supper is in fifteen minutes. Go get cleaned up."

"Yes, sir." Harry grinned sheepishly and continued at a slower pace up the next set of stairs. Well, until Severus was out of sight anyways.

When he got to his room, he quickly hopped into the shower and tried to wash the sweat and dirt off of him. Whenever he moved his left shoulder, pain shot right down his arm. He scowled in annoyance as he towelled off. Why did he have to fall off of his stupid broom, anyway? Would Severus be mad that he hurt himself? Probably not. The Dursley's definitely never cared if he was hurt.

Harry quickly changed into clean clothes and made his way down to the dining room. Severus was already waiting for him but smiled at the boy as he sat down.

"You look much better. How you get so dirty when you go flying, I'll never know." Severus shook his head as he passed the boy a plate of chicken.

"I was out there all day! And not all of it was flying. I went exploring be the stream too! Is there a pixie nest back there? I thought I saw one. It looked like the ones from Lockhart's class anyways…" Harry rambled on as he continued to fill his plate with food.

"Pixies? There shouldn't be. They are nasty little things. I'll go look at it tomorrow. Until then, stay away from there, alright?"

"Yes, sir. I don't want to get bit by those again. That hurts!"

"Bit? When were you- Harry are you hurt?" Severus demanded. He had been watching Harry as he reached for his glass of water, and noticed him wince as he lifted his left arm. Harry's eyes snapped up to meet his professor's.

"Ummm, no sir. I'm fine. Why would you think that?" Harry kept his tone neutral but found he couldn't keep his eyes on his guardians face. Instead, he busied himself with the food on his plate.

"Harry, I don't like liars. You know the rules. Now, are you sure you aren't hurt?"

"I- I fell off my broom, sir. My shoulder hurts." Harry murmured, staring determinedly down at his lap.

"Come here, child. No, don't look at me like that. You aren't in trouble, I just need to make sure you're not seriously hurt. "

Harry reluctantly made his way around the table to Severus, who cast a quick spell over him. Harry felt his shoulder get warm briefly, but the sensation quickly passed. Severus placed his fingers under his chin, forcing Harry to look at him and not the floor.

"Luckily you just bruised it a bit. How did you fall off, child?"

Harry blushed and tried to look down again.

"I uh, I was chasing the snitch through the trees and wasn't paying attention to where I was going and almost crashed."

"Merlin Harry! You could have been seriously hurt! I don't suppose you were following at a leisurely pace were you?"

"No, sir."

"I thought not. You really must take better care of yourself, Harry. If you can't do that, then you won't be allowed to play with it in the orchard anymore. Use some common sense, child."

"Yes, sir. I'll be more careful."

"Good. Now take this, it will help with the pain."

Harry glanced at the vial the professor held out to him. He must have summoned it from his store cupboard. Harry pursed his lips together and shook his head, making Severus sigh.

"Yes, Harry. It will make you feel better. I promise it won't harm you. You also need to take this nutrition potion, and that I'm not going to change my mind on." Severus spoke gently, but firmly. He didn't understand why the child was so adamant about not taking his potions. Sure, some children refused to take their medicine just to be contrary, or because of their taste, but these ones didn't even taste too horrible, and he doubted Harry would be acting out.

Instead, Harry just took a step back and shook his head again.

"Please don't make me sir,"

"I don't understand you, child." Severus huffed. "You take your potions for Madam Pomfrey don't you?"

Harry nodded.

"Then why don't you take these? There is no difference. I made most of the ones for the infirmary anyway."

"I dunno. It's different." Harry glared at a spot on the floor as he spoke.

"Don't you trust me?" He watched the young boy as he stayed silent. "Okay, that's okay. We'll work on that trust thing. Look here, boy."

He waited for Harry to look up before taking a small mouthful from both potion vials. He set them back on the table in front of Harry.

"See, would I try to poison myself? Now you take the rest of them. It will make you feel better."

Harry hesitantly took the first vial and scrutinized the bright blue contents.

"That's the nutrition potion."

Harry nodded and quickly dumped the contents in his mouth and grimaced at the taste.

"Oh come on. It doesn't taste that bad!"

"It tastes like licorice," Harry stated simply, scrunching his nose at the professor. He lifted the next potion and glanced at the milky white contents. "Pain reliever?"

Severus nodded, and he tipped the contents into his mouth and swallowed quickly. He felt a cooling sensation rush through his body before the pain in his shoulder began to ebb away.

"Better? Good. Now go finish your dinner. The nutrition potion isn't a supplement for eating a real meal."

The pair ate in silence for a few minutes before Harry spoke up.

"I got an owl from Hermione."

"Yeah? What did she have to say?"

"She gets back from France tonight. She said that if it alright with you, her parents say that she can spend the afternoon here on Sunday."

"Hmmm, I suppose that could work. I have some brewing I need to do that will take all weekend, but I trust that you two can stay out of trouble while I'm in my lab."

"I don't know why you would even have to ask. I never get in trouble Severus," Harry grinned cheekily and laughed at his guardian's scowl.

"Did you tell her that you are staying here then?"

"Ummm not quite… Well, not at all really." Harry said sheepishly. Severus shook his head at the boy.

"Well, after dinner write her back and tell her that we can pick her up at her house at noon on Sunday. She can have lunch with us if she likes."

"Okay! I'll do that right away."

The two made small talk for the rest of dinner, and as soon as he was done, Harry jumped from his seat and ran upstairs to write back to Hermione. Severus just shook his head at the young boy's antics. He was starting to regret agreeing to allow Harry's friends to visit the manor. The one child got into enough mischief on his own. It will make the brat happy though, he thought as he retreated to his study.

oOoOOoOo

"Harry?" Severus asked gently as he knocked on the door at 10:30. "Are you ready for bed?"

Harry nodded and climbed sleepily into bed. Severus approached the bed and closed the window curtains with a flick of his wand. He straightened the covers and made sure the boy was comfortable before dimming the bedside lamp. He was NOT tucking the boy in of course, but just fulfilling his duty as guardian. Albus would for sure scold him if the child were to catch a cold because he was not adequately situated in bed before he went to sleep.

Severus placed a vial of potion on the bedside table and sat on the edge of the bed, beside Harry.

"Will you please take the dreamless sleep potion tonight?" Severus begged hopefully. Harry had done so well earlier today that he figured it was worth a try, but the boy just shook his head.

"I don't need it! I didn't even wake up last night."

"Yes, but that doesn't guarantee that you won't wake up tonight."

"I won't! Promise!"

"Fine! I won't argue. But I'll leave this here just in case you feel like taking it."

Harry nodded at his guardian and quickly stifled a yawn. Severus bade him goodnight and quietly left the room, leaving Harry to fall into a fitful sleep.

Usually, when Harry had nightmares, his mind would focus on one particular incident from his childhood, and he relived every terrifying moment of it. Tonight though, scenes flitted through his mind hazy and unclear; gone too fast for Harry to get more than a glimpse and a sickening sense of dread and terror.

There was the time he accidentally burnt the bacon when he was 7, and in response, his aunt forced his hand into the hot bacon grease. When that memory faded away it was replaced by his uncle screaming at him holding his belt angrily in his hand, then Dudley holding his head in the toilet until he thought he would pass out, then his uncle again and his aunt.

Harry tossed and turned in his bed, wanting desperately to forget everything that had ever happened at the Dursley's. He woke with a start though, when the scene in his head morphed from his uncle holding him by his throat, to Severus holding him and sneering down at him.

Harry sat straight up in bed, breathing hard. He pulled his knees up and rested his forehead against them, groaning when he heard the door creak open. He didn't think he even yelled out that time!

The bed sank down beside him, and Harry shied away from the hand on his back.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

It was the same questions Severus asked every time Harry woke him up, and as always he shook his head no. Severus sighed and once again placed his hand soothingly on Harry's back. Harry finally lifted his head a few minutes later and looked fearfully at his guardian.

"I'm sorry for waking you up, sir." He muttered

"Nonsense, child. You didn't even wake me up, I did. I have a charm to alert me if you are distressed. I want to know when you need me, Harry."

The two sat in silence for a few minutes, Harry gradually relaxing and leaning into Severus' arm. Blinking sleepily, Harry let out a yawn, and Severus chuckled. He got off the bed, careful not to disturb the sleepy child too much. Holding out the vial of Dreamless Sleep potion, he gave Harry a meaningful look. When Harry refused again, Severus sighed.

"Talking about things will make it easier for you to work through what happened to you, Harry, and your mind will be able to cope more efficiently than making you relive that hell hole every night. Can we start off with something small? Like why you don't like taking potions from me? Surely you don't still hold a grudge against me and think I would try to poison you?"

Harry regarded Severus shrewdly and gave an annoyed huff.

"No, it's not that. It's just that- Well, you see… My Aunt Petunia liked to give me things to drink too, especially when I was sick. She said that it would make me feel better, but it never did. It usually made me feel worse or would make me sick. Then she would get mad at me for getting sick. Even when she gave me medicine like the stuff she gave Dudley, it didn't make me feel better. I think she would give me too much of it. She would be furious if I didn't drink it though…"

Harry's confession came out in hesitant spurts with many pauses. Severus waited patiently by his side the whole time, not saying anything and just collecting his thoughts. He quickly squashed the feeling of panic welling up in his chest as his mind started going through all the muggle chemicals that woman could have fed the child. He had checked the boy over, though, and surely a diagnostic charm would show any damage from chemicals and not just from physical abuse. Right? He would have to remember to send a letter to Poppy first thing in the morning to double check.

After a moment of quiet, Harry swiped a stray tear from his cheek. Severus turned and knelt on the floor next to Harry's bed. He ruffled the child's hair affectionately and tilted his chin up.

"Thank you for sharing that Harry. I hope you understand that what your aunt did to you was wrong and abusive. You are a child and deserve to be taken care of, not to be fed things that will make you ill or damage you. I promise you, Harry, that I will never do anything to harm you and that includes feeding you harmful things. If I ever ask you to take something, I swear it is to help you, not harm you. Alright?"

Harry nodded hesitantly, only feeling slightly mistrustful of the professor.

"Thank you, Severus."

"I just want you to be happy Harry. But, it is now almost three in the morning, and you seriously need your sleep. Are you okay going back to bed now?"

"Yes sir" Harry yawned again and laid back down in his bed. After a moment, he also reached out and grabbed the potion vial from his bedside table, downing it in one swallow.

"Good boy Harry. Good night, I'll see you in the morning."

"G'night Sev," the child mumbled, already slipping off to sleep.

oOoOOoOo

**August 8, 1993**

"Is this the one? Are you positive this is the right house?" Harry tugged on Snape's sleeve, ignoring the man's scowl.

Severus took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. This child would surely be the death of him. You would think that he had fed Harry sweets instead of oatmeal this morning by the way he was acting.

"Calm yourself boy, before I decide to cancel this play date of yours!"

Harry's mouth fell open in indignation.

"Playdate?! I am not a little kid!"

"Oh yes? Then what is it?"

"Its- Its- We are hanging out!"

"Hmmm of course. I am serious though. I do not enjoy the presence of hyper little children, so if you cannot calm down, I will start to reconsider how wise it is to have two children over at my home."

"Yes sir" Harry looked chagrinned for about five seconds before bouncing onto his toes again. "But Severus, are you sure we are at the right place?"

Severus just levelled the child with a glare and shook his head. Just a few minutes ago they had apparated behind a tall hedge in the alley behind the Granger's home. They had made their way to the street and now were standing in front of a two-story yellow house in the middle of Maple Street.

"Come along. Let's go fetch your friend for your play date" Severus smirked at Harry and began walking up the drive, ignoring Harry's glare.

"It's not a playdate!" he hissed at the retreating figure before running to catch up.

Severus waited patiently by the door for Harry and then rang the bell. There was a clatter of footsteps rushing around inside before the door was thrown open. Hermione beamed when she saw Harry and quickly threw her arms around the boy.

"Oh, Harry! I'm so happy to see you. I couldn't believe your relatives let you- Oh! Umm, hi professor?"

Hermione gave a startled look as she finally noticed Severus standing beside Harry. Severus gave the boy a sharp look. He had assumed Harry had at least let the girl know who was picking her up.

"Good morning, Miss Granger."

"What's going on Harry?"

"Oh… Uh-"

Harry was saved from answering as a woman came around the corner and pulled the door open further. She appeared to be in her mid-thirties and had curly black hair. She smiled at Harry and Severus before waving them in.

"Good morning! Why don't you two come in? It seems that my daughter has forgotten her manners here." She raised her eyebrow at Hermione who had the decency to blush at the rebuke.

Harry and Severus stepped through the door into a cozy entryway, Harry avoiding eye contact with Hermione at all costs.

"So you must be Harry! I've heard so many things about you. I'm Katharine Granger." Katharine beamed at him and pulled him into a tight hug, which Harry hesitantly returned.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Granger."

"Oh, how lovely sweetheart. And you must be… Harry's uncle?" Katharine gave Severus a puzzled look.

"No, ma'am. I am Professor Severus Snape. I-uh I teach at Hogwarts." Severus glanced down at Harry as he spoke. He didn't want to take away the child's chance to explain the situation to his friend.

"Oh! I thought Hermione had said that Harry's relatives would be picking her up today…"

"Yes, it seems that Harry left out some information in his letters to Miss Granger."

"Harry, what's going on?" Hermione piped up again. She was giving Harry a firm look, which the boy was dutifully ignoring.

"Patience, Miss Granger. Information will all come in due time."

"Severus, how about we sit down and have some tea. No offence meant, but I would like to know why you are here to pick up my daughter and not who I was expecting."

"I would expect no less," Severus replied, and followed her towards what he assumed was the kitchen.

"Hermione, why don't you show Harry the photo albums we put together from France while professor Snape and I chat?"

"Yes, mum!"

Katharine Granger busied herself with making tea while Severus waited at the worn oak table. Setting the teapot and cups down, she sat across from Severus.

"Now, you said you were a professor at Hogwarts?

"Yes, I am currently the potions professor there. I have had the… pleasure of teaching your daughter for the past two years."

"Ahh yes. I have heard a lot about you from Hermione. She speaks highly of you."

"Does she now?" Severus quirked an eyebrow at the woman across from him, who just laughed.

"Yes! She says you are quite strict, a bit biased, but an excellent professor none the less. She seems to enjoy the subject."

Severus snorted at the description of himself. Katharine took a sip of tea and regarded the professor again.

"Now, may I ask why a professor from the school is accompanying a student during the holidays to pick up another student?"

"Well you see, the situation at the moment is a little complicated. I expect I can trust you with this information though." Severus waiting for Katharine to nod her understanding before continuing. "As of a week or so ago, Harry is no longer just my student, but my ward as well. He was removed from his relatives and placed in my care."

"But why was he removed? Does this have anything to do with Hermione having a fit over Harry not replying to her letters for a few weeks?"

"I am not sure about the letters, but I would assume so. His relatives were…. deemed to be unsuitable guardians for young Mister Potter. There was evidence to suggest that he would thrive more in a different environment."

It was silent for a few moments while Katharine mulled over what Severus had said before her eyes widened in understanding and her hand flew to her mouth.

"No! You- You don't mean to say… Hermione had mentioned they weren't the nicest people, but she never said anything- Oh god, that poor boy!"

"Yes, he has been through a lot, but hopefully he will heal. We are working on that together right now. I know he hasn't told Hermione any of this and I don't know what he will divulge of it today so I would appreciate if this was kept between us for now."

"Of course! And if there is absolutely anything we can do for Harry just let us know!"

"I will make sure to do that. I'm sure having Hermione over today will help. I am surprised that he hasn't gone stir crazy at the Manor yet."

Oh, I know Hermione is beyond excited to see him. And if you ever need an afternoon off, don't be afraid of dropping Harry off here too. I can imagine how overwhelming it is to suddenly be a guardian."

"I will keep that in mind. But I should get going and let you get on with your child free afternoon. I will bring Hermione back after dinner, around 7?"

"That sounds perfect."

The two adults made their way back to the front of the house and found Harry and Hermione leaning over a photo album, Hermione prattling on about some tale of her father almost getting run over as he chased his hat down a windy street.

"Come along Miss Granger, Mister Potter. It's time to leave."

Both kids jumped up and rushed over to where Severus was standing.

"Okay, we are going to apparate, so I need you both to hang on tightly. Miss Granger, I assume you've never done this before. You are going to want to hold on tight. The feeling is unpleasant, but it's over in just a few seconds."

Hermione nodded her head, and both her and Harry grabbed onto one of Severus' arms each. After making sure they were both secure, he said a quick goodbye to Katharine and turned and disappeared into thin air.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has given kudos or reviewed! Please take a moment to leave a review! Reading what you guys think is really what keeps me going with my writing.


	7. Exploring

**August 8, 1993**

The trio appeared on the deserted road in front of the gates at Snape Manor, Hermione clinging to Severus' arm as she almost tumbled over when they landed. Severus flicked his wand at the gates to let them through and led them up the long drive to the house. It didn't take long for the barrage of questions to begin as the small girl took in her surroundings.

"Harry, what's going on? Are you ever going to answer my questions or are we just going to sit in silence all afternoon?" She looked pointedly at Harry, who just shrugged, looking towards the orchard out back. Hermione huffed in annoyance and turned towards the professor. "Where are we?"

"Snape Manor"

"Manor? Only the old wizarding families have manor houses, and the Snape's weren't on the list of old families" Hermione asked in a tone that Severus found to be exceedingly annoying. Harry looked up at him as well, curious for the answer.

Why couldn't he have invited that Weasley boy? Severus thought. He was obnoxious, but at least he kept his mouth shut most of the time.

"It was formerly Prince Manor, and after the passing of my mother I was the last in the Prince line, therefore I inherited the Manor. After it was handed over to me, it became the Snape Manor."

"Well, then why don't the other manor's change names like that as well?"

"Inheritance almost exclusively is handed down through the male line. My grandfather was unlucky enough to not produce any sons, so it went to my mother's line. Honestly girl, with the amount of time you spend with your nose in a book I would think you could figure that out."

Hermione scowled at him, but he ignored her. They had arrived at the front doors, and Severus led them into the foyer.

"I'm going to get some work done in my study. Stay out of trouble please."

"Yes, sir!" Harry mock saluted the scowling professor as he walked away and Hermione simply stared at him in amazement.

"Harry… what's going on?"

"Let's go upstairs" Harry deflected, grabbing her arm and leading her towards the staircase. Hermione shook her head again but left him alone. She trusted him that he would tell her whatever was going on here eventually. Harry just usually took a bit of prodding to get him to reveal things about his personal life.

The pair didn't stop to look in any rooms as they ascended to the fourth floor. Most of the doors were closed, but Hermione would occasionally catch a glimpse here or there of a bedroom or what looked like a library. Hermione tried to stop to peer into the library, but Harry just laughed and tugged her arm again.

"You can look around the library later! My room is up here."

"Your room? So you are living here?" Hermione asked, raising her eyebrows. Harry only shrugged.

They got to his room, and Harry threw open the door, grinning slightly. He had never had a proper room to show off before (nor any friends he could show it off to), and he was enjoying the feeling immensely. He shut the door behind them and went to sit on the bed as Hermione took everything in. She wandered past the desk and towards the bookshelves. She ran her fingers lightly over the small collection of books and toys stacked there.

In addition to his old, broken toy soldiers, there was now a set of wooden magical creatures that moved when you touched them, his practice snitch, a couple of wizard jigsaw puzzles whose pictures moved just like wizard photographs, and a few wizard adventure books. Severus had 'just happened to be looking through boxes in the attic' and had brought the old toys down for Harry yesterday. He had assured Harry that he would not spoil the child, but that growing children needed active engagement if he was going to turn out to be anything other than a dunderhead. Harry had just smirked at the dour professor, and Severus had given him a half-hearted glare before dumping the toys on the bed and leaving the room.

Hermione finished her inspection and sat at the foot of the bed, facing Harry.

"Is this all your stuff?" Hermione continued when Harry nodded. "Where did you get all of it? It's not like your relatives would buy you wizard toys."

"Severus gave it to me. It used to belong to some generation of Prince children."

"Severus?! Since when are you on first name terms with Snape?"

Harry just shrugged again and Hermione jumped up from the bed, hands on her hips and a scowl that could rival Snape's on her face. It seemed she had finally had enough of Harry's half-answers.

"Harry James Potter! You listen to me now. We have been best friends for two years and we don't keep secrets from each other! Especially one that would explain why in the bloody hell you are living with a man you hated a month and a half ago! Now I know you don't like talking about your personal life, but why in Merlin's name would you invite me over here and not explain one bloody thing to me?"

Harry gulped as he looked at the livid girl glaring at him, hands on her hips. He had forgotten how frightening Hermione could be when you got her mad enough.

"Now, are you going to tell me why you have a room here or am I going to be frustrated all day?" her features softened and she sat near Harry's feet, facing him.

Harry sighed and forced himself to look at his friend and not his feet.

"I live here now."

"Okay…" she said slowly, waiting for any other explanation. "How long is that for?"

"I dunno," Harry shrugged again. "Till the end of summer when I go back to school? I don't know what happens during the next summer holidays though."

"What about the Dursley's? Why aren't you staying there? I know you don't like it there, but surely Dumbledore didn't just change his mind halfway through the summer."

"I- uhhh, well I got removed from their custody."

Hermione tried to keep her face neutral as she took in this new information, but she couldn't help but show some surprise.

"Why did that happen?" she asked slowly, suddenly unsure if she wanted to know the answer.

Harry looked away again, the familiar feeling of panic working its way into his chest. He didn't want to talk about this, especially not with Hermione. She would realize how much of a freak he was, and she would stop being his friend. He wanted Severus to take her away and make this whole day not happen. Harry flinched back when he felt a hand on his leg and looked up at the worried face of his friend.

Hermione had never seen Harry act like this before. The panic and fear were familiar to Harry, but he was usually much better at hiding it. When Harry had complained one night after a nightmare about being even more emotional and skittish than usual since coming here, Severus had explained that his mind was just trying to cope with and understand his new situation. Harry just thought of it as weakness.

"You- you don't have to tell me if you don't want to," Hermione said gently.

"Seriously?" Harry raised an eyebrow at her. Hermione was not one to give up easily when she wanted information. She grinned sheepishly at him, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks.

"Well, I don't want to make you uncomfortable. No matter that you didn't keep any secrets from Ron or me about the philosophers stone, or the chamber, or anything really before…" Hermione grinned cheekily at him as she trailed off.

Harry rolled his eyes at her but felt grateful none the less. As much as she teased him, he knew she was giving him an out if he really didn't want to tell her.

"I- I don't know exactly how it happened, I don't understand it still, but Severus says that I appeared outside the wards to the Manor and apparently I was pretty banged up…"

"Banged up? What in Merlin's name happened?"

"Uhm I used accidental magic on my aunt, and my uncle was… well, he was disciplining me, and something happened, and I showed up here. Professor Dumbledore and Severus decided that I would do better living elsewhere, so here I am."

Harry fixed his eyes stubbornly on the comforter covering his bed, not looking at Hermione as he explained. It was silent for a few moments, and when Harry could no longer stand the quiet, he risked a glance up at Hermione.

She seemed to be frozen. Her jaw had dropped, and her hand covered her mouth. Her eyes darted around his face, observing him and blinking back tears.

"Oh Harry…" she murmured quietly.

"Don't!" He snapped, and she looked surprised. "Don't look at me like that. I don't want any pity. I was fine. They didn't even need to move me, they were just fussing."

"Why didn't you tell us anything?"

"Because there was nothing to tell! Severus and Dumbledore were just overreacting, that's all!"

"Harry…"

"I'm fine, really Hermione. You have to promise you won't say anything to Ron. Promise me, Hermione?"

"Fine! But you are going to tell him, right? You can't exactly keep the fact you are living with Snape a secret forever."

"Well, I could. I didn't have to tell you anything. I was just dying of boredom here, all alone…" Harry grinned cheekily at the girl sitting in front of him, and she rolled her eyes.

Suddenly she launched herself at him and tackled him in a huge hug. Harry laughed and returned the embrace.

"I'm so happy you are okay, Harry."

Harry was interrupted from responding when his door flew open, nearly crashing into the wall behind it. Hermione leapt away from Harry in surprise, and the two turned to look at the livid form of Snape in the doorway.

He had an odd expression on his face; a mix of anger, nausea, and surprise. Harry regarded him uncertainly.

"What, exactly do you two think you are doing? This door stays open!" Severus spit out, looking between the confused face of his ward and the now blushing face of the young Miss Granger.

"Nothing! Why does it have to be open? You never make me keep it open. And what happened to knocking? We were having a private conversation!" Harry snapped but immediately went silent at Severus' glare.

" _Merlin's beard… private… not proper… oh, Merlin_ " Severus muttered to himself. "This stays open."

By now, Hermione's cheeks were bright red, having picked up on the implications that seemed to have gone right over Harry's head.

"We really were just talking sir, promise! Harry, why don't you show me the rest of the house?"

She jumped off the bed and pulled a still confused Harry to his feet. Harry just shrugged and gave his guardian another bewildered look. Severus just shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. Having a young teenager in his house would be the death of him.

Harry led Hermione back downstairs and showed her the other bedrooms and the sitting room on the third floor. He pointed out Severus' lab before leading her into the room that she was most excited for; the library.

"Oh my God. There are so many books! I would kill to have this in my home. Have you read many of these?" Hermione asked, her eyes bright. She trailed her fingers lightly over the bindings, stopping every now and then to read a title more closely.

"Umm not really," Harry said sheepishly. "And neither are you today! Maybe you can come back another day and explore in here more, but I want to do something more fun than just reading all afternoon! Come on, I'll show you more of the house."

Hermione left the library somewhat reluctantly. The descended another floor and were almost at the main staircase before Hermione turned to Harry.

"So… this whole thing with Professor Snape, does this mean he is your father now?" she asked uncertainly.

"No! Definitely not. It wasn't an adoption really, just a change in legal guardianship." Harry scrunched up his nose as he tried to remember what Severus had explained to him. "It was enough to make sure I didn't have to go back to the Dursley's, but I think it's a step below adoption. They said that it was easier to keep a guardianship secret."

Hermione nodded, and they continued their way downstairs. They went to the left and Harry began showing her the rest of the rooms, Hermione's eyes wide as she took in the sheer size of the manor. Finally, they found themselves in the living room, and Harry happily pointed out the painting above the fireplace.

"-and this is Aunt Elly. Aunt Elly, this is Hermione, my friend I was telling you about."

The painting smiled down at the young girl.

"Hello dear. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. Harry here has been talking my ear off with all his excitement about a friend coming over."

"It's a pleasure to meet you too ma'am."

"Oh, and such good manners, just like Harry. Are all of your friends as well behaved?"

"Well, when Ronald puts his mind to it, he can sometimes behave properly." Hermione huffed.

Harry laughed and led Hermione over to a small table, grabbing a pack of exploding snap cards. Hermione excitedly agreed to play, and the children spent the next few hours happily engrossed in various versions of the game, telling stories about their summers and telling Aunt Elly about their time at Hogwarts; leaving out the parts that would get them in trouble of course.

Harry was happy, which wasn't something he could say honestly very often since the end of the school year. He had his friend, and although he hadn't quite accepted his current living arrangements fully yet, he had to admit that nothing terrible had happened.

Yet. That was always the doubt in the back of his mind. Severus hadn't done anything terrible to him yet. He knew that it was only a matter of time before Severus got tired of him, after all, it's not likely that the Dursley's had hated him as soon as they found him. It was after they got to know him that they realized what a freak he was…

Harry shook his head and pushed those thoughts away. He glanced out the large windows, towards the sunny orchard, then at the clock on the wall. There was still a few hours until dinner would be served.

"Let's go outside, Hermione. I can show you around the orchard, and maybe we can fly around—okay maybe not that, but it's so nice out, so we can still go and explore. I haven't been everywhere yet."

Hermione shook her head but grinned. Harry never did stop trying to take her on a broom, but going outside did seem fun. The grounds of the manor had looked so pretty when they arrived.

"Sure! Are we allowed to?"

"Yeah, I'm sure it will be okay..." Harry avoided eye contact with Hermione as he led her toward the door.

"Did you let Severus know you were going out, dear?" Aunt Elly called from across the room. Harry paused and glanced back.

"Ummm yeah! He said to just stay out of his way" Harry lied quickly. Well, it was partially true. Severus didn't want them bothering him, and they definitely wouldn't be a bother if they were outside.

Harry quickly pushed Hermione out the door before she could protest. She gave him a disapproving look as they set out across the lawn.

"Harry, are you supposed to let Snape know we left?"

"C'mon Hermione, don't be like that. I'm sure he won't even mind. I've been out to the orchard plenty of times before. Now let's go explore!"

Harry took off running before Hermione could respond, and after a pause she chased after him, laughing as he dodged through trees. She finally caught up to him as he slowed down as he approached the stream.

"Want an apple?" Harry asked as he swung himself onto the lowest branch and climbed nimbly to the topmost branches, tossing down an apple from the very top of the tree.

"Harry James, you be careful up there! I don't think Snape would be too pleased if you broke your neck-"

"Wait—Hermione, come up here! I think there's something over there!" He clambered down the tree a bit and held out a hand for Hermione to grab.

She rolled her eyes at the boy above her but grabbed the hand anyways. Harry was behaving more carefree than she had seen in a very long time and she wasn't about to spoil it. She let him pull her gently up to the lowest branch, and she followed him slowly to the top. The trees weren't huge, but they were definitely taller than ordinary apple trees. She supposed it had to do with magic somehow.

Harry pointed further away from the house to where Hermione could just make out the top of what appeared to be some sort of building a couple hundred yards away.

"Is that even still on the property? It might be the neighbours?"

"I don't think he has neighbours. Anyways, Severus said there would be a fence at the edge of the property, and I don't see one. Let's go check it out."

Hermione nervously glanced back towards the Manor, which was already some distance away.

"I don't know Harry. It's pretty far. What if we get lost? Or there's something dangerous out there?"

"We won't get lost, we can always climb a tree to find the Manor if we need to. And there's nothing dangerous out here – okay except for the pixie nest, but that's downstream more – Severus said so himself. He wouldn't let me out here if there were. You might get to see some cool magical creatures though…" Harry trailed off, knowing Hermione's thirst for knowledge would outweigh her reservations for wandering so far from the house.

"Fine! But let's stick to the stream for now. It looks like it goes towards that building."

Harry readily agreed, and they set off, following the winding stream while they talked, occasionally stopping to climb a tree to make sure they were going the right way.

"Harry, are you happy? Here I mean?" Hermione asked suddenly as he hopped down from yet another tree.

He froze and glanced at her before continuing walking. Hermione rushed to catch up and waited for him to answer.

"I guess. It's not what I imagined it would be, which is good I suppose. But I have my own room and food and clothes, so it's not bad."

"Those are things you are supposed to have anyways, Harry. I just want to make sure you are happy. Snape isn't horrible to you, is he?"

"No! He is fine. He's different than he was in school." Harry mused. He glanced over at Hermione before switching the subject "I think we need to go a bit more to the right. It should be just ahead here."

Sure enough, after walking for a few more yards, they could see an old stone structure between the trees.

"What do you think it is?" Hermione wondered, the pair wandering closer.

Harry regarded the squat building in front of him, the vaulted roof reaching a few feet above the tree line. There were wooden shuttered windows along the sides and huge double doors leading inside.

"Maybe it used to be a barn? Let's look inside."

His suspicions seemed to be confirmed as they pulled the creaky doors open, letting light into the dusty interior. There were three stalls lining each side of the small room as well as a tiny storage area and workbench at the back. They explored the tiny space quickly, opening one stall and peeking into another one.

In the back corner, they found a rickety wooden ladder leading to what appeared to be a loft above them. Harry placed his hands on the ladder, but Hermione pulled him back.

"Don't be an idiot Harry. You'll fall right through, and I am not pulling your injured self all the way back to the Manor to face Snape by myself" she snapped, gesturing towards the parts of the roof above that had rotted right through.

"Oh don't be such a spoilsport, I'll be-"

He was cut off as he put his weight on the first rung of the ladder and nearly fell flat on his bottom as the old wood collapsed. Hermione tried not to laugh as Harry scowled at her, daring her to tell him she told him so. He turned around and half-heartedly kicked at a wooden bucket leaning against the wall. It bounced off one of the stall doors with a loud bang.

All of a sudden the air was filled with a soft chiming, almost sounding like a dozen wind chimes caught in a windstorm, and a mass of orange rose from the stall the bucket had hit. Harry jumped back in surprise and this time did land on his butt in his hurry to get away from whatever was in the stall. The mass began separating, and Harry could tell that it was made of hundreds of tiny winged creatures.

Hermione choked back a laugh again and shook her head at the bewildered look on Harry's face.

"Don't you ever pay attention? If I'm right, those are just flitterby moths. They are completely harmless really." Hermione smirked and left it unsaid that they both knew she was rarely ever wrong.

At that moment Harry's stomach started growling.

"Bloody hell. We need to get back. It must be almost dinner, and Severus is definitely not completely harmless."

"You didn't mention that fact when we set off over here!" Hermione scowled at him disapprovingly but followed Harry as he set off at a run towards the manor.

They were slowed down slightly, as they had to keep climbing trees to check that they were going the right way. Once they reached the stream, the pair stopped, gasping for breath, before continuing on walking the rest of the way.

Harry glanced nervously towards the Manor as it came into view. He could hear Severus shouting.

"—Harry James Potter! I swear to Merlin if you don't get back here right this instant… There you are!"

Severus caught sight of the two guilty children and started towards them, and Harry's step faltered. Severus looked absolutely livid as he made his way towards the pair, his hands were in fists, and he clutched a piece of parchment in one of them. He came to a halt in front of the two and looked them over.

"What in Merlin's name, do you think you were doing? Going off to who knows where without telling anyone!"

"We are really sorry, sir," Hermione piped up.

"I'm sure you didn't even know there was anything to be sorry for, Miss Granger. Harry knows the rules of my house, you do not." He sighed in exasperation and looked the small girl over again. "And you are injured! Go inside while I speak to Harry, and I will fix you up."

Hermione glanced down at her legs and noticed a few minor scrapes on her knees and shins from climbing trees all afternoon. She looked up and opened her mouth to protest, but wisely shut it and turned to go inside the house when Snape scowled at her.

Once she was out of earshot, Severus turned his full glare onto Harry.

"Explain yourself, boy."

Harry flinched at the harsh tone and took a step back. His stomach was churning wildly.

"We just went exploring…"

"Bloody hell child! I thought you were smart enough to follow simple rules. Did you forget already that you are not to leave the house without telling me? Or what about our rule of no lying, huh? Imagine how I felt finding out from Eliza that I apparently gave you permission to go outside! In addition to that, you are almost half an hour late for dinner!"

Severus' voice gradually raised until he had to stop himself from full-on shouting at the boy. He pinched the bridge of his nose and sucked in a deep breath.

Harry stared at him fearfully. Now he had done it. He would be punished, and Severus would realize he was just a burden—

"Are you hurt?" Severus asked suddenly, and in a much calmer voice. Harry jumped at the sudden change of topic.

"No, sir."

"No scrapes or cuts?"

"No, sir."

"Good. Go inside and wash up. Dinner is waiting in the dining room."

Harry took an uncertain step towards the house, and when Severus did not stop him, he quickly made his way into the living room and past Hermione who was sitting on the couch. Snape stuffed the parchment in his pocket and followed him to the house. He walked towards the girl and raised an eyebrow at her.

"I really am sor—"

"Hush girl, let me look at that cut."

"It really is fine, sir, I promise."

Snape ignored her complaints and kneeled down in front of her, summoning a clean cloth and a potion.

"Nonsense. I can't send you home injured, what would your mother think?"

To his surprise, Hermione just laughed.

"She will think I was just as clumsy here as I am at home."

"Nevertheless, I can easily fix this," Snape smiled slightly up at the girl, and she looked at him in surprise. "Now, these cuts don't look deep so we will just disinfect them. This may sting a bit, but it won't hurt nearly as much as that vile muggle disinfectant. It should help heal it quicker too."

He gently swabbed the cuts with the potion and banished the cloth and vial again.

"There we go. Now let's go eat before dinner gets cold."

Snape stood up and led Hermione to the dining room where Harry was already waiting. They all began eating, and while it was quiet at first, Severus was able to coax the children into talking.

Hermione excitedly told Severus all about the flitterby moth's they had seen, and how she had sworn she had seen a bowtruckle as they ran past on their way back. Harry joined in soon after, telling all about the barn they had found and asked many questions about why it was there.

Severus listened idly and was surprised as he realized that the girl's incessant chatter did not irritate him nearly as much as usual.

 _Must be that she has lost that know-it-all attitude_ , he thought, smirking slightly to himself.

All too soon in Harry's opinion, dinner was over, and it was time for Severus to bring Hermione back home.

"Why can't I come with you?" Harry whined as Severus prepared to walk the girl outside the wards so he could apparate her home.

"Because I said so, Harry. Now say your goodbyes and go and shower and do something quietly inside before you go to bed."

Harry scowled at him but did as he was bid. He hugged Hermione quickly, and they promised to write to each other soon.

Minutes later Severus and Hermione appeared behind the hedge in the alley behind the Granger's house. They made their way to the front of the house and waited patiently after knocking on the door. Soon the door swung open, revealing a smiling Katharine. She opened her arms and pulled her daughter into a hug.

"Hello sweetheart, how was your day?"

"It was great! Professor Snape's Manor was huge! And he had a library, and a music room, and-"

"Yes, well you will have to tell your father and me all about it later. Did you thank Mr. Snape?"

Hermione blushed and smiled up at the professor.

"Thank you very much, professor. I had an amazing time visiting with Harry. Mum, do you think Harry might be able to come over here and visit?"

"I suppose that would be okay, as long as it's alright with Harry and Mr. Snape as well." Katharine smiled down at her excited daughter and turned questioningly to Severus.

"I'm sure that could be arranged, as long as Mr. Potter sees fit to stay out of mischief."

At this, Hermione let out an exasperated sigh.

"With all due respect, professor, but if I have to wait for Harry to stay out of mischief before I can see him again, I may be old and gray."

Both adults chuckled at this and Katharine sent Hermione inside to assist her father with something.

"I really am grateful for you letting Hermione come over today, I know she had a wonderful time. And I am serious when I said Harry can come over whenever you need. I know it's nice for us to get a break for a few hours, and we have had 13 years to get used to having a child in the house."

"Well, actually…" Severus started thoughtfully. "I am having a bit of an issue, and perhaps you could be of some help. I am not too sure how much Hermione has told you of Harry's situation in the wizarding world?"

"A bit. His parents were killed when he was very young, and Harry somehow escaped? That man is gone now, is he not?"

"Yes, but some of his followers are still around. My part in that war included me getting close to some of those people, and I have been instructed to remain close to a few to keep tabs on them. I just got notice that one such person is coming to my house on Saturday, and I have not figured out what to do with Harry while they are there. You can understand it's important that they don't know Harry is staying with me."

"Of course. Harry can come spend the day with us. Hermione has a dentist appointment in the afternoon, but Harry can hang out with me while she is gone. Will you be able to pick him up that night, or would it be safer for him to spend the night? We have a spare room upstairs. Like I said before, we will help in any way you need with Harry, he is quite important to Hermione."

Severus breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't realize how tense he was since he received that letter this evening and he was worried about what he was going to do with Harry while his 'guests' were over.

"Yes, it may be best for him to stay over. I am never quite sure how long these meetings will last. I can never thank you enough for this, Katherine."

"Don't even mention it. Parents have to stick together after all," she laughed.

A male voice called something from in the house, and Katherine turned to look down the hallway.

"Well, I better get going before they burn my house to the ground. I will see you Saturday morning?"

"Yes, and thank you again. Have yourselves a good evening."

With that, Severus turned and walked back to a safe apparition point, before disappearing with a pop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you once again to those who took the time to leave a comment. What do you guys think of the latest chapter? How will the visit to the Granger's go? Who is coming over to visit? Tell me your thoughts!


	8. Tension and Nightmares

**August 11, 1993**

The next few days were extraordinarily tense at the Snape Manor, and as intelligent as Severus prided himself on being, he could figure out why. Harry had become sullen and quiet the day Hermione had left, and while Severus had at first attributed it to his ward being childish and pouting that his friend left, but now he wasn't so sure. He had attempted to lift the boy's spirits by telling Harry that he was going to visit Hermione on Saturday, but it didn't work. If anything, it seemed to make Harry even more upset. As the days wore on Harry became increasingly jumpy and tense, and the small amount of progress he had made seemed to be gone, and he reverted to the same boy he was when he first arrived. Well, almost the same. While Harry used to be unnervingly polite and obedient, he now seemed to be deliberately setting out to annoy Severus.

Harry would traipse into the dining room late to almost every meal, almost missing some in the process. Meals were now a quiet affair, for as much as Severus tried to probe Harry for conversation, the child remained quiet and would only answer questions with one or two words. When Severus would check on Harry in the mornings, he was usually goofing off in a rather messy room instead of working on his summer assignments and had been given several warnings. He had also been sneaking out of the house regularly without notifying anyone. It had also been the last straw with Severus one day when it was pouring outside and he requested Harry stay inside. Of course, Harry didn't listen to a word he had said, and Severus was only able to find him hours later by following the muddy footprints through the house. He had started to lecture his ward but stopped almost immediately when he saw how truly terrified Harry seemed and sent him to go wash up instead.

Although all of these things made Severus want to pull his hair out, the most concerning change was that Harry was back to refusing any potions given to him. This lead to both Harry and Severus waking up at least once a night, although it was usually two or three times. Harry would sometimes accept comfort after his nightmares, but he would never take the dreamless sleep potion.

This meant that by Thursday night, the pair were both tired and irritable. Severus had tried to figure out what had made the brat act up all of a sudden, but he couldn't figure it out, and he refused to write to Albus again. He would think Severus couldn't handle an insolent child and he would be sent off to live with Minerva, and Merlin only knew what kind of insufferable brat would return to Hogwarts in a few weeks' time.

Severus shook these worrying thoughts from his head as he knocked gently on his ward's door before pushing it open. Harry was already in bed, curled under the covers so he didn't have to look towards the door.

"Harry, can we talk?"

"No." Came the muffled reply.

"Look at me when I am talking to you, Harry." Severus snapped irritably.

The only response he got was a shift in the comforter to more securely wrap the child underneath. Severus had to force himself to take a calming breath and force the irritation away. The child was probably just tired, which although was no excuse for being rude, Severus did understand. He himself felt ready to fall asleep even though it was only 9:30. He glanced at the bed stand, where the unopened vial of potion was still sitting.

"Then at least take your potion. You need a good night's rest child." He waited for a reply but got none. "Well then… Good night, Harry."

He didn't expect a reply this time as he turned to exit the room and he was not disappointed. He did pause before the door clicked shut though, straining his ears for the sniffles he swore he had heard. With a sigh he let the door shut and retired to his room. The only thing he currently felt certain of was that teaching kids for many years had not prepared him in the least to know what to do when raising a young teenager. And being a Head of House for a few abused children was nothing like being a guardian to one.

oOoOOoOo

Harry sniffled as he heard the door click shut behind him and angrily wiped at the tears leaking out of the corners of his eyes. He curled tighter into himself and drifted off into an uneasy sleep, where once again all of his worries and worst thoughts found him.

_He woke up with a start, or at least he thought he woke up. Something seemed off, but Harry couldn't put his finger on it. His heart was hammering in his chest, and it picked up even more speed when the door creaked open, letting dim light from the hallway flood the room._

_"S-Severus?" Harry asked fearfully, taking in the livid form of his guardian. Harry had yet to see him this angry since he came to live here. Severus looked more like he did at Hogwarts, cold and cruel, as he approached the bed. Harry's breath hitched in his throat as he noticed the belt that was looped in Severus' hand._

_"You stupid, useless, freak. Did you really think I would let you get away with being a worthless burden? Especially with how ungrateful you've been behaving lately." he sneered._

_"_ No s _-sir, I'm sorry sir. Please don't…"_

_"Shut up you blithering idiot. You deserve it. You were stupid enough to believe me when I told you that you weren't going to get real punishments. Lines? Early Bedtimes?" Severus scoffed at him. "You know that those aren't punishments. Why don't you think I haven't punished you at all yet? You know how stupid freaks like you need to be punished. Or are you stupid enough to have forgotten? I've just been waiting for you to be comfortable so I put you back in your place."_

_With that, Severus leaned down and tried to grab Harry, but he scrambled back across the bed._

_"No sir, please don't. I promise I will be better!" Harry cried out as Severus got a hold on his foot and dragged him back across the bed, flipping the writhing child onto his stomach._

"Harry!"

Harry sat up and looked around wildly, his heart thrumming wildly in his chest and his breath coming in short gasps. He jammed his glasses on his face, and his gaze found Severus who was quickly approaching the bed, his wand gripped in his hand.

He quickly scrambled back across the bed, eyes glued to the wand. Harry was sure that Severus knew how to hurt him much more with his wand than a belt. Severus may have been talking, but Harry couldn't tell; his heart was thrumming too loudly in his ears. A hand reached out, and Harry jumped back even more, almost tumbling off the bed in the process.

Severus froze and observed the child with worry, and Harry felt an unexpected surge of anger build up inside of him.

"GO AWAY!" he screamed, throwing Severus his fiercest glare.

"Harry, child, please calm down-"

"NO! Get away from me you stupid git!"

"Harry…" Snape hissed warningly.

He flicked his wand and Harry flinched back violently, sliding off the bed on the opposite side of Severus. Nothing happened except for a small glass vial came zooming into the room. Snape caught it and tossed it gently onto the bed between them.

"Take this Harry. It's a calming draught. You need to take it, no arguments this time. Drink it, and you can calm down and go back to sleep."

This statement and Severus' forced calm tone caused Harry's irrational anger to flare even more. Before he could think his actions through Harry grabbed the vial, hurled it as hard as he could towards his guardian, and began shouting.

"I don't want your stupid potion or you! You hate me! And I hate you! You are nothing but a stupid lying arse! I fuc-"

"HARRY JAMES POTTER!" Severus snapped, raising his voice and shocking the boy into silence. "You watch your mouth and your attitude Mr. Potter, understood?"

Saying nothing, Harry crossed his arms across his chest. Severus huffed and looked at the clock. It was almost four in the morning. He flicked his wand at the shattered mess that used to be the calming drought to clean it up and summoned a new vial. He set it roughly down on the nightstand beside the dreamless sleep and pulled the covers back on the bed.

"You can take these or not, but you will get back in bed this instant and go to sleep. I do not appreciate your attitude Mr. Potter, but we can discuss it later. Go to bed."

With that Severus turned on his heel and stomped angrily from the room, shutting the door loudly behind him and leaving Harry to stare after him in frustration and confusion.

Throwing a glare towards the door, Harry climbed back into bed and threw the covers over himself. If he was honest, he was terrified of falling asleep again because he didn't want to be thrown back into that dream, so instead, he tossed and turned for hours until he finally grew to be too exhausted and fell into another fitful sleep as the sun broke over the horizon.

oOoOOoOo

Severus drummed his fingers impatiently on the table and glanced at his watch again. Harry was now over half an hour late for breakfast. Again. He could feel his irritation bubbling under the surface of his self-control, but he tried to squash it down. Blowing up at the boy was going to do nothing except for possibly scare him.

That seemed to be Severus' major dilemma the past few days. He did not appreciate in the slightest how Harry was acting, but he didn't know how to respond. It was much easier at Hogwarts when he could dispense detentions like candy. All his students knew that he would not actually hurt them, even the ones with not-so-desirable pasts. Here, he could tell Harry was frightened of him, and he didn't want to scare the boy. They had discussed consequences for Harry's actions last week, but Severus was worried that Harry was not comfortable enough with Severus and he certainly didn't trust him to accept any consequences without being frightened off. Merlin, the boy had even cowered when Severus had lectured him after the children had wandered off without telling him.

With another glance at the clock and an exasperated huff, Severus pushed back from the table and made his way to the top floor. Harry's door was still closed, and Severus knocked quickly before pushing the door open. He flicked his wand, and the curtains flew open, letting sunshine stream into the room and eliciting a groan from the boy in bed.

Severus looked around in disgust and had to fight again to keep his irritation down. He did not get a proper look at Harry's room the night before and now he could see how messy it was. Clothes were lying everywhere, books and parchment were covering every table and some on the floor, the toys that usually sat on the bookshelf were scattered on the ground, and the entire contents of Harry's bedside table seemed to be knocked to the ground.

"I thought we agreed that you were to keep your room clean and tidy, Mister Potter? Never mind the fact that you are late for breakfast again." Severus bit out.

" 'mmtired" came the mumbled reply from deep within the covers.

"That's not my problem Potter. If you would just take the dreamless sleep potion like I asked, we wouldn't have this problem. You have no excuse." Severus snapped back. "And look at me when I am talking to you!"

Harry rolled over enough to glance fearfully at his guardian. Severus sighed when he saw how unhealthy the child looked. His face was pale and drawn, which just made the dark circles under his eyes more pronounced. Severus closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. It was silent in the room for a few moments.

"I am sorry for snapping at you Harry. I just want one day of peace between us." He paused and moved to sit on the end of Harry's bed. "Can we please talk about what has been going on? I am at a complete loss as to why you are misbehaving."

Harry shifted into a sitting position and pushed himself against the wall as to be as far from Severus as possible, and shook his head.

"Yes, Mister Potter. I wasn't really giving you a choice here. We are going to talk about this."

"Please sir, I don't feel good. I just want to sleep. Please."

The last word came out as a whimper and Severus sighed again. Harry really did not look well, and he did need sleep. Harry squirmed under Severus' intense gaze and pulled the blankets back up around himself.

Severus tried to quiet the voice in the back of his mind that snarled that it was the boy's own damned fault he was sick after playing in the rain for hours a few days ago. Instead, he forced a calming breath before replying to the boy.

"Fine. You may go back to bed. I will send some food up for you in about an hour and a half though, and I expect you to eat it. I'll come and check on you at lunch, and this room had better be tidied, understood?"

Harry rolled his eyes with a mumbled 'whatever' before sliding down under the covers again.

"Watch your attitude young man!" Severus snapped, throwing a glare at the young boy. "I don't appreciate it, and if you want to go to Miss Granger's house tomorrow, you will behave yourself today."

Severus knew it was a bluff, and he could tell that Harry knew it too. There was simply no choice, although Harry did not know that part. The Malfoy's were coming over in the morning, and Harry could not be here.

"Yeah right. You hate me, and you can't wait to get me out of your house! You want me gone as much as I want to be!"

"ENOUGH! You are out of line Potter. I will not stand for this anymore. Go back to sleep, and think on your behaviour because it needs to change, or else."

With one last glare, Snape stormed out of the room and slammed the door behind him. Harry roared in frustration and threw the book on his nightstand towards the closed door, before steadying his shaking hands on the bedspread.

He was just as mad at himself as he was at Snape. He hated how scared he was of the older man, and he hated how his chest tightened in panic whenever his guardian so much as frowned at him. He knew he was intentionally provoking Snape, which he had never actually done in school, but Snape's lack of response just made him even angrier.

Harry laid down with a huff and eventually fell back into another fitful sleep where Snape featured in his nightmares just as frequently as his aunt and uncle did.

oOoOOoOo

**August 14, 1993**

"You will behave while you are here. I don't want to hear of any rudeness when I come to pick you up tomorrow" Severus muttered to the boy standing beside him as they waited for someone to answer the door.

They were once again standing outside of the two-story yellow home on Maple Street, but unlike last time, there was none of the lightheartedness. Harry and Severus had spent the remainder of yesterday in relative silence. Not wanting to argue anymore, but too exhausted and irritable to try to draw Harry out, Severus had spent the entire day in his potions lab, and his meals were spent with his head hidden behind a copy of the Daily Prophet. When the charms alerted him at 2 in the morning, Severus almost didn't even get up but dragged himself across the hall to check on Harry. Luckily, he drifted off to sleep again fairly quickly and without any more nightmares the rest of the night.

The door eventually was pulled open by a smiling Katharine, and she quickly ushered them inside.

"Harry! It's so good to see you. I'm glad you get to hang out with us today. How have you been dear?"

"I've been good, thanks" Harry muttered shyly, unused to the maternal affection she showed from anyone other than Mrs. Weasley.

Katharine smiled back at him and ruffled his already messy black hair. She held out her hand for Harry's bag, which Severus handed over. He crouched down so he was eye level with Harry and regarded him seriously.

"Now, child. I'm serious about behaving alright?" Severus waited for the murmured 'yes sir' before continuing. "I packed a vial of calming draught and a vial of dreamless sleep potion in your bag. I'm begging you to use them if you need to. There is no need to deprive yourself, or anyone else in the house, of sleep."

Harry merely shifted uncomfortably, and Katharine watched the exchange with interest.

"Harry, dear. Why don't you go join Hermione in the backyard before breakfast? She really is excited to see you. It's that door right through the kitchen there. Don't mind Greg, he's just making breakfast."

"Thank you, ma'am. Bye, sir!" Harry rushed out before turning to go down the hall. Katherine smiled after him before turning to look at Severus, leaning back against the hall table.

"Not that it's any of my business, but is everything going alright with you and Harry?"

Severus sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Honestly, not really and for the life of me I can't figure out why. All week he has been jumpy and irritable and seems set out to break every rule I set for him!" Severus ground out. He hated admitting when he was having difficulties, and this was definitely one of those times. To his surprise, Katharine merely laughed.

"You mean to say, he is acting like a normal child?"

"No, well yes, I don't know! He never used to act like this. He was never a perfect student, but he never set out to cause this much trouble before."

"He is probably just adjusting to his new circumstances and testing boundaries. Continue to do whatever it is you do, and follow through with consequences, and he will adjust soon enough." At Severus' blank look, she levelled him with a frown. "Oh, Severus! Please tell me that you went over consequences with the child!"

"Yes, of course, I did!" he scoffed. "He looks like he's about to faint every time I so much as frown at him though. He'll get scared off if I actually were to get angry with him."

"Well, were you planning to beat the boy?"

"Of course not! We had discussed lines, loss of privileges, and the like."

"Well, I'm no expert in these matters by any means, but I have been a parent for 13 years. Kids like to poke at things just to see what happens. I think that your lack of response is probably making him more nervous than any punishment actually would. Think about it. He came from an abusive home where only God knows what happened to him, and that's probably how he expects you to respond. He is probably waiting for you to blow up and treat him like those awful people did."

Severus scowled and pinched the bridge of his nose again. The damned woman did have a point, as much as he was loathe to admit. He felt a faint relief though, in the knowledge that perhaps he had another ally to turn to other than Albus when he was having difficulties with Harry. At least she was actually a parent and not just a meddlesome old man.

"Just think about it. Now, you said something about potions?" Katharine scrunched her nose slightly at this.

Severus made a noise in the affirmative and quickly showed them the pocket that they were situated in.

"The black one is dreamless sleep potion. It works kind of like a muggle sleeping pill, with the added effect of completely blocking dreams. He has had quite the problem with nightmares, and his sleep has suffered because of it. He had… shall we say bad experiences, with his guardians feeding him substances that made him ill, so he is very resistant to taking anything I give him. You can try to get him to take it, but it's up to you if you want to fight him on that. The other is a calming draught. He sometimes has severe panic attacks when he wakes up and has trouble calming down. Again, if you can get him to take it, it will help"

"And both are safe for children?"

"Absolutely"

"Okay. Black for sleep, purple to calm. Got it."

"I'm sorry to put this on you. It's difficult enough dealing with as his guardian."

"Hush, now. I wouldn't have invited him over if I wasn't prepared to deal with any of the baggage that comes with that. Now you better get going. Don't you have a meeting of some sort?"

"Yes, any minute now actually. Thank you again, Katharine. You don't know how much I appreciate this."

With one last goodbye, he turned and disappeared with a crack, leaving Katharine to shake her head and make her way into the kitchen, mumbling about crazy magic.

oOoOOoOo

Harry made his way to the back of the house and slipped through the back door. The back yard was small but pretty. The door led onto a stone patio with some chairs surrounding a small table. There was a shed in the corner and a garden with beautiful wildflowers growing in it along the back fence. Nestled in the middle of the garden was a wooden garden swing, and that's where Hermione was perched, her nose in a book, her messy curls pulled back into a braid, and idly rolling a football with her foot as she swung.

She looked up when she heard the door shut and a huge grin broke out across her face. She set down her book, and Harry moved to join her on the swing.

"Can't keep your nose out of a book for long, can you?" he smirked at her, and Hermione had to bite her tongue from telling him the expression was very similar to Professor Snape's. Instead, she laughed and cuffed him upside the head.

"Enough out of you! How has your week with the professor been? Have you talked to Ron yet? He hasn't mentioned anything to me about it in his letters."

"It's been good, I guess. And not really... I haven't figured out how to bring it up."

"Harry! He's your best friend! How could you not tell him yet?"

"I don't know! I want to, but he's going to go bloody nuts when he finds out."

"Harry, he's only going to be hurt that you kept it from him for two weeks now. He may be shocked, but he'll be happy that you're happy."

And that was the problem, Harry thought bitterly. Although he sometimes would lie to Hermione about little things to keep her from worrying, he knew Ron would probably see through it if he actually tried. And he couldn't tell Ron he was miserable, because then he would do something stupid that would probably get them both killed at the hands of an irate Severus Snape. Harry shook these thoughts from his head and forced a grin when he saw Hermione giving him a weird look.

"I'm fine Hermione, promise."

"Really? In your last letter, you seemed a bit… off, I guess?"

Hermione was scrutinizing his face, and he rolled his eyes. Instead of answering the question, he reached down and scooped up the black and white ball and grinned cheekily at Hermione.

"I'm surprised you even own a piece of sporting equipment, Miss Bookworm,"

She laughed and grabbed it out his hands, standing up and moving to the center of the yard.

"I never said I didn't like sports, I just don't understand your fascination with that death wish of a game you like to play. I used to play football in my community league before I went to Hogwarts."

Harry looked at her in disbelief. He couldn't imagine bookish Hermione running around chasing a ball.

"Oh yeah? Well let's see how good you are then"

Hermione was sufficiently distracted, which was really Harry's goal, and didn't ask any more about Severus. They quickly set up goals along opposite sides of the fence and played 1-on-1 for the next half hour until they were called in for breakfast.

Mrs. Granger smiled at the two tired, laughing children as they tumbled through the doorway, and ushered them to go wash up before they ate. Breakfast was a fun affair, and Harry found himself to be enjoying himself. He was introduced to Hermione's dad, who was a kind, portly fellow with mousy brown hair and a hearty laugh. The family spent the entire meal telling stories about their time in France and asking Harry about how he liked Hogwarts. They didn't bring up his relatives or Severus, which Harry was happy for.

After breakfast, Hermione suggested they walk to the neighbourhood park for a while, and Harry readily agreed. He had always watched the kids around his old neighbourhood on the playground, and he had wanted to join in, but Dudley had scared away any friends he could have had.

The pair met up with a group of kids around their own age and Hermione introduced them as her friends from primary school. A boy named David grinned at him as he eyed him up and down.

"Are you a brainiac like Hermione, then?"

Hermione rolled her eyes and shot Harry a quick look when he looked confused.

"Yeah, he goes to Hogwarts School for gifted children as well."

At that statement, Harry fought the urge to roll his eyes as well. Of course, Hermione's cover story would be that she was attending a boarding school for exceptional students. The conversation quickly moved on, and the group quickly taught Harry the rules to a tag game on the playground. They remained there for a few hours before hurrying back to Hermione's home for a quick lunch before Hermione and her dad left for the dentist's office. They would be gone a few hours, as Hermione had an appointment and Greg had a few things to do around the office, leaving Harry alone with Mrs. Granger. She got up from the table and ruffled Harry's hair before she started clearing dishes.

"May I help?"

"Only if you really want to dear. I can set the telly up for you in the other room if you'd like."

"That's okay. I'd love to help."

Mrs. Granger smiled at him again and together they cleared the table, and Mrs. Granger started washing the breakfast and lunch dishes, letting Harry dry them and stack them on the counter. They worked in companionable silence for a few minutes before Mrs. Granger decided to speak.

"How is everything going at home, Harry?" she asked, keeping her eyes on the dishes in front of her. She saw Harry stop for a moment out of the corner of her eye before he continued to dry the plate in his hands.

"Very well," Harry lied quickly.

Mrs. Granger didn't say anything, and let the silence stretch between them. Harry squirmed uncomfortably. He hadn't known this lady very long, but she reminded him of Mrs. Weasley in the fact that she had a way of making you feel instantly comfortable around her, and she had an inherent mothering quality to her. It made it hard to lie to her.

"Well, not really I guess." Harry tried again.

"What's going on?"

"I don't know. I suppose we are arguing a lot?"

"What about?"

"Everything really. But actually over nothing. I usually start it." Harry admitted. Mrs. Granger turned to look at him, but he focused on the dishes in front of him.

"And why is that dear?"

"I don't know. He's a liar, and he scares me." Harry was growing frustrated with her questions, but it felt kind of nice to talk about it.

"He scares you, so you provoke him?" Mrs. Granger chuckled, and she saw Harry fight a smile as well.

"No, of course not! I guess I just want to prove him wrong. He never gets mad about anything really, but he will and waiting for it just makes it worse, so I want him to just get it over with."

"Harry dear, all parents get mad. It's basically our job. But that doesn't mean you are going to get hurt. Severus told you the consequences for your actions, didn't he?"

"He lied" Harry shrugged.

Mrs. Granger tried to come up with an argument that would get through to the boy, and so they worked in silence for a few minutes. They finished the dishes and Mrs. Granger quickly put them away. Harry set to wiping down the, and he seemed to be deep in thought.

"Uncle used to do the same thing," Harry said so quietly that Mrs. Granger wasn't sure that she was supposed to hear it. "He would act real nice and I wouldn't get any punishments for a while, but he was just waiting. Those were the times I would really get it."

Mrs. Granger fought back tears as she struggled to find an appropriate thing to say. Harry's back was still turned to her, and he didn't show a reaction when she approached and wrapped her arm around his shoulder except for briefly leaning into the half-hug. His eyes found a pack of cards sitting on the counter, and desperate to change the topic he reached out for them.

"I don't know many muggle card games, but Hermione says you guys play them a lot. Can you teach me some?" He asked shyly.

"Of course, dear,"

They sat down at the table again, and they spent the rest of the afternoon playing crazy eights, rummy, and war. They moved onto easier topics and Harry had great joy in telling Mrs. Granger all about quidditch. She had already heard many tales about Hogwarts from her daughter, but very few of them involved the popular sport, and it was entertaining to hear about it from Harry's perspective. Mrs. Granger, in turn, told Harry stories of all the places they had visited as a family. Apparently, they had used to go on trips every other year when Hermione was smaller but had gone every year now that Hermione had gone away to Hogwarts. Mrs. Granger laughed as she explained that going away for a week or so gave them a chance to actually spend time together without Hermione being able to run off to catch up with her friends.

When Hermione and her father came home a little while later, she excitedly suggested they bring out the board games as well.

"What do you mean you've never played monopoly?" She demanded. "What about Cluedo? Surely you've played that one?"

"Nope, neither one." Harry laughed. "Dudley was never big on letting me play with them."

Hermione rolled her eyes and pranced out of the room, presumably to get the games, all the while muttering under her breath.

"Have to keep that boy caught up on everything. First school, now this…"

The rest of the evening passed by in a happy blur. Hermione taught him all her favourite board games and the entire family joined in. They only paused to help Mrs. Granger cook dinner before resuming their play after they ate.

Harry looked at the family in amazement. He had only seen this kind of happiness and acceptance in the Weasley family and thought that they were perhaps an anomaly. He knew that most families were probably not like the Dursley's, not everyone had to deal with a freak like himself, but to actually enjoy spending this much time together? It was weird, but Harry was enjoying himself.

It was quickly closing in on 11 when they decided to call a draw on the last game of Monopoly. Mrs. Granger had soon become bankrupt, and Greg was following quickly behind her as Harry and Hermione each owned almost half of the remaining properties.

"Ha! Park Place is mine, dad. That will be $1100 please!" Hermione said.

"Well, that cleans me out! You finish her off now, lad. You have beginners luck on your side tonight," he laughed.

"Actually, I think it's time for these ones to go to bed. Come on now, kids, get upstairs and I'll come to say goodnight after I clean this up. Hermione dear, show Harry to the guest room? His bag is up there already."

Harry stifled a yawn as he followed Hermione upstairs. She showed him the bathroom at the end of the hall that he could brush his teeth in and then pointed out the guest room.

"My room is right beside yours here. Just knock if you need anything!"

They said a quick goodnight and Hermione disappeared into her room. Harry followed suit and entered the room he was to sleep in. He quickly grabbed his toothbrush and gave a scowl at the two potions vials sitting on the bedside table. Mrs. Granger must have put them there when she brought his things up. He didn't even need those anyways, he didn't know why Severus sent them.

After he finished getting ready and had slid under the covers, he heard Mrs. Granger come upstairs and enter her daughter's room. There were muffled words before he heard the door close and she knocked softly on his door.

"Come in!" he called.

"Hello dear. Did you find everything you needed?" she asked, sitting down at the foot of his bed.

"Yes, ma'am. Thank you for today, Mrs. Granger. I had a lot of fun."

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself. I know Hermione loves hanging out with you too. Now, Severus told me that you needed to take a potion before you went to bed?"

"No, I don't need it! It's only if I have nightmares, and I probably won't tonight."

"Well, if you're sure…" Mrs. Granger trailed of skeptically.

"Positive."  
"Alright then, dear. Have a good sleep. Our room is right across the hall. Don't hesitate to come to get me if you need anything."

"Thank you, Mrs. Granger. Goodnight"

Mrs. Granger smoothed down his hair and smiled down at him before leaving the room. Harry sighed and snuggled down further in the covers and gave the offending glass vials one last scowl before shutting his eyes and drifting off to sleep.

oOoOOoOo

Katharine couldn't fall asleep that night, as she was worried about Harry. She had only really known the boy for a little while, but she had spent the last two years hearing all about him from Hermione, and he really was such a sweet boy that it was hard not to instantly care for him. Instead of sleeping, she was reading a book, so an hour after she had said her goodnight's to the children she was still awake and heard the yell from the room across the hall.

Immediately she jumped out of bed and crossed the hall. She could hear the child whimpering in his sleep, and her heart broke for him. Before she could open the door though, she heard her daughter's door open as well. Hermione's scared face peeked around the door and caught sight of her mother.

"Mum? What's going on? Is Harry alright?"

"Yes dear, he's having a nightmare is all. Go back to bed now."

She moved towards the door again and let out an exasperated huff when Hermione moved to follow her.

"No, Hermione! Go back to bed."

"But mum! He's my friend. I want to see if he's okay."

"He's fine. He probably won't want the extra attention of his best friend seeing him having a nightmare, now move miss."

When Hermione huffed, but turned and made her way back to her own room, Katharine moved into Harry's room. The child was thrashing about the bed and was muttering under his breath. She shook his shoulder gently, trying to get him to wake up.

"Harry, dear. It's just a dream. You're okay, just wake up now."

When Harry did eventually wake up, he looked around looking scared and confused. Moving on instinct, Katharine sat down beside the young boy and just like she used to do for Hermione when she would have a bad dream, she pulled the boy to her side and carded her fingers through his hair and wiped away the tears.

"It's okay dear, you are alright now. There we go, just take a deep breath in. Good boy." She whispered softly. Eventually, his tears stopped and so did the trembling.

"'m sorry."

"Hush dear. You have nothing to be sorry for." She assured him, still gently carding her fingers through his hair. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really. Severus was in it again." Harry stated through a yawn.

"My dear boy. You have to know Severus would never hurt you. You two may argue, but I can tell he is a good man."

Harry merely shrugged and stifled another yawn.

"You poor thing. You look exhausted. I really think taking that sleeping potion would help. Severus said it would keep the dreams away."

"No thanks."

"Why not?"

"It'll make me ill."

"Severus wouldn't give you anything to make you sick. Here, look."

At Harry's disbelieving look, she picked up the black vial and took a small mouthful of it. She was skeptical of this whole potion business, but she truly trusted that Severus wouldn't have given her anything dangerous.

"See! I'm not turning into a toad or anything!"

"I don't think potions can do that!" Harry laughed, and after a hesitation took the vial that Katharine held out, much to her relief.

He downed in all in one go, and she set the vial back down on the table.

"Good boy. Now you go back to sleep, and I will see you in the morning."

Harry mumbled a good night, the potion already working to make him sleep. Katharine made sure he was tucked in, and then retreated from the room. She peeked into her daughter's room and sighed when she saw her sitting up on her bed.

"Go to sleep, my dear. I don't want to hear any complaints about being tired in the morning."

"Is Harry okay?"

"He's fine. He just had a nightmare."

"But is he _really_ okay?"

Katharine sighed when she saw the tears in Hermione's eyes. She moved to sit down beside her on the bed.

"He will be. He just needs time to heal. Just be his friend and be there if he needs to open up, but don't push him. He needs to get there on his own. But now it's time to go to sleep now."

"Night, mum."

Katharine kissed her forehead and tucked her in as well, before retreating back to her own room and quickly falling asleep herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! Please leave a review and let me know what you think! How are we feeling about Harry/Katharine interactions?


	9. Breaking Point

**August 15, 1993**

Severus took a deep breath and inwardly prepared himself before apparating to go pick up his ward. He has slept through the night for the first time in weeks, but he felt just as mentally exhausted as he had been all week.

Entertaining Malfoy all day had been draining, but he had also spent much of the day pondering what Katharine had said about Harry testing boundaries. If that were the case, he was definitely failing in the guardian category. Lucius had questioned Severus a few times about where his mind had wandered when he sensed Severus was no longer paying attention to their conversation. Severus lied and said that he was simply experimenting with altering a new potion and it wasn't quite working right, and it had grabbed all of his attention. This had luckily also covered for the dark circles under his eyes from lack of sleep.

Lucius had requested a meeting in the morning to discuss 'business,' which when it involved the Malfoy patriarch usually meant something shady or illegal. He wasn't disappointed but was able to get away with giving vague advice and the name of a potions master in Sweden who may be able to help retrieve what he wanted. The next part of his day involved going along on a routine school inspection and report with the Board of Governors, which as a head of house he was expected to attend. He knew of course that he was supposed to invite Lucius and his family for a lavish dinner, and to keep up appearances, he obliged. Dumbledore had given him strict orders to continue gathering intel from as many former death eaters as possible after all. So he had Quinly and another house elf prepare a decadent four-course meal for Lucius, Narcissa, and Draco which of course turned to drinks afterwards.

Draco had wandered off to entertain himself in the living room with Eliza and a game of cards, and Severus was tense with worry for the next two hours that the nosy child would wander upstairs and find Harry's room. He had absolutely no explanation for that if it were found out. Of course it was a needless worry, as Quinly had made sure to lock the room up to prevent and nosy wizards from entering as soon as Harry left this morning.

Finally, close to midnight, Lucius summoned Draco, and they made their leave.

"Thank you for dinner, Severus, and for meeting with me today. I will be following up with you on the matters we discussed. It's a pity you could not be of service to me." Lucius drawled, one eyebrow quirked in the silent question he had been pestering Severus with all morning.

"It is rather unfortunate. But the potion you require needs much more focus than I can afford right now. Between my research and keeping that old coot happy up at the school, I most likely would not produce the highest quality product."

"I never understand why you insist on staying in that school. Surely your talents could be of use elsewhere, although I'm sure Draco would be quite disappointed if you were to leave." Narcissa stated as she tugged her cloak tighter around her.

Draco blushed red at his mother's statement and scowled at the ground. Severus smirked at the child and ushered his guests towards the door. He was eager for them to leave so he could finally relax.

"I always keep my options open Cissa. You never know what the future holds. Thank you very much for coming over. It's been much too long."

The Malfoy family had taken their dismissal, and after another chorus of goodbyes, they disappeared down the long drive to the apparition point.

Severus took another breath to clear his mind before disapparating and appearing again with a pop in the alleyway behind the Granger's house. There was no use of already being in a foul mood when he went to pick up his ward. The child was sure to put him in one soon enough anyway.

He knocked on the front door, and Katharine opened the door grinning. Severus fought back a scowl. Was this woman always happy? He didn't think it was healthy.

"Severus! Hello! Come on in. I just sent the kids to the post office to get the mail. Why don't you come on in for a cup of tea while we wait for them?"

"Yes, that would be great. Thank you, Katharine."

Severus followed her into the kitchen and settled himself down at the kitchen table while she set about preparing the tea. She returned a few minutes later with the teapot and cups as well as some biscuits.

"So, how was Harry? Any nightmares last night?"

"Yes, one but it wasn't so bad. I managed to get him to take the sleeping potion you gave, and it put him out for the rest of the night."

"Really? You truly are a miracle worker,"

"It was no trouble, really. We had some time alone together while Hermione was away at her appointment, and I think he built some trust in me."

Katharine chewed on her lip as she debated whether or not to tell Severus what the dream was about. On the one hand, she felt it would be good for Severus to know, but on the other, she didn't want to betray Harry's trust.

"I see. So did the boy manage to behave himself?" Severus queried, breaking Katharine out of her thoughts.

"Oh, of course. You really do have a sweet boy there Severus."

Severus rolled his eyes at this and let out a huff.

"Yes, well, I wish I saw that side of him more often," he grumbled.

"Severus, I uh- well, I got Harry to talk a bit…" Katharine trailed off, unsure of how to broach the subject. "Well, I don't want to step on any toes, or to presume that I know how to raise the boy best because I really don't-"

"Oh, out with it! I'm not going to get offended, I need all the help I can get with him it seems."

"Alright, then. It's just that Harry really does seem to be trying to figure out how far he can push the boundaries before something bad happens. He did tell me that you scare him and he seems to think you are lying about consequences. He did briefly mention that his uncle would sometimes withhold punishments only to punish him worse later. Perhaps he believes that is what you are doing?"

Severus took a big gulp of the scorching hot tea and rubbed his temples as he thought over what Katharine said.

"Bloody hell. I don't know. That seems to be something the brat would think. I seem to be doing miserably at this guardian business. I can handle dozens of abused children at Hogwarts, but this one child is going to be the end of me."

"Oh Severus, don't think that way," Katharine interjected, laying her hand on Severus' forearm. "You are doing wonderfully. It must be much harder for both you and Harry. Those other children have a constant setting. They know what to expect at school with you there, and they know what to expect when they leave. Harry has been uprooted. He has no idea what to expect here. There has to be an adjustment on both your ends."

Severus was stopped from replying as the front door burst open, and two laughing children burst in, obviously in the middle of a debate.

" – well, at least I don't faint when I think about going on the broom. Seriously, Hermione, you are fine at the top of the astronomy tower, yet you won't get two feet off the ground on a broom."

Hermione stuck her tongue out at her friend and playfully pushed his shoulder. Harry just laughed and shook his head at her. Katharine and Severus watched them with mild amusement, and she turned to bring the cups and saucers back to the counter.

"Just think about it," she murmured to Severus before turning back to the kids. "There you two are! You got the mail, I expect?"

"Yes, mum. Miss Branton said to tell you she would bring by some of her fresh baked scones this afternoon."

"Thank you, dears. Harry, is your bag ready to go?"

"Yes ma'am, it's just in the sitting room. Hello sir," Harry added on as an afterthought.

"Hello, child. Let's go get your bag, and we can get home. I have to simmer some ingredients for my potion before lunch."

The four of them trooped into the sitting and said their goodbyes. The Granger matriarch pulled Harry into a hug and kissed the crown of his head, making the boy blush. After making promises to write to Hermione, and assuring Katharine that they both knew that they could contact Katharine for anything, they were finally ready to go. Harry grabbed his bag and hesitantly grabbed onto Severus' arm, allowing him to apparate them both back to Snape Manor.

oOoOOoOo

Harry pulled away from Severus as soon as he regained his balance and started making his way towards the house. He hated that the unease he felt before he spent the day at the Granger's was back. It had felt nice to just relax for a change. He could hear Severus approaching from behind, his long legs making it easy to catch up to the young boy.

"So, Harry, how was your time at Hermione's house?" Severus asked.

"It was fine, sir."

"Did you have fun?" he tried again.

"Yes, sir."

Harry could hear Severus let out a huff from beside him and he tensed again.

"Alright, child. Go busy yourself until lunch. It will be ready in a few hours."

Harry sighed in relief and bolted ahead into the house. He quickly decided on the library and made his way upstairs. Trailing his finger along the bindings, Harry soon found what he was looking for: A Beginners Guide to Wandless Magic. He had seen it on one of the first days here, and he was eager to read it. It had never occurred to him before that you could do magic without a want. Settling down on one of the comfiest armchairs, Harry flipped open to the introduction and began reading.

Two hours and three chapters later, Harry glanced up at the clock. It was already 12:30, and he knew that lunch would be served soon, but he didn't feel like seeing Severus just yet. He hadn't seen his guardian since he had arrived home, but he had heard him pass by the library twice, grumbling to himself both times.

It wasn't his fault, Harry decided, if the git wanted him to come down, he should stop being so unpleasant all the time. A few more pages wouldn't hurt anyways.

When Harry finally made his way into the dining room, he avoided Severus' glare. He could tell his guardian was giving him one.

"Sorry for being late?" He offered feebly

"Just sit."

Harry did as he was told, and the pair dished up their food in silence. Harry was just about to spoon some soup to his mouth when Severus interrupted.

"So, how is your summer homework coming along? You've been working on it for over a week now." Severus asked, sounding irritated.

At his tone, Harry found his temper spark as well. Obviously, Severus was put off just by being in the same room as Harry. Why did the greasy git even bother becoming Harry's guardian if he obviously hated him so much? Harry also felt a twinge of panic. He had only managed to get one of the six assignments done so far. It wasn't his fault, though! He had been stumped by the stupid potions essay for almost a week now.

"Umm, they are going quite well. Almost done them now."

"Don't lie to me boy" Severus snapped, and Harry instinctively flinched at the name.

"How would you know if I'm lying?" Harry grumbled.

"I saw your work."

"You were snooping in my room?" Harry almost yelled. He could feel his temper flare dramatically.

"Don't raise your voice at me, boy! I was not snooping. You left your bag with me, and I returned it to your room, which was once again messy I might add. I picked up your textbooks off the floor to put them on your desk, and I saw your assignments sitting out. Imagine my surprise when I saw you only managed to complete a transfiguration essay and a very shoddy start to a potions one."

Harry recoiled from the rebuke about his potions work and glared at the professor. Who did he think he was?

"That's an invasion of my privacy! You don't see me going through your things!"

"I'm sorry that you feel like I've invaded your privacy while you stay in one of my rooms in my house, Mister Potter. Don't change the subject, why haven't you done your work? What have you been doing every morning?"

"Well, maybe if my professor weren't a rude, greasy old git, I would be more motivated to do his stupid assignments!"

"Cut the attitude, boy! Answer my question!"

"Why do you even care? You aren't my father!"

"I'm your guardian! It's my job to make sure you don't turn into a spoiled, self-entitled, insolent little brat!"

"SO WHAT? You hate me, and you don't want me here! Professor Dumbledore made you take me in!"

"Watch your attitude, boy!"

"Or what?"

By now, both of them were shouting and glaring daggers at each other. Severus didn't answer and simply gave Harry a hard stare. Something inside Harry snapped at this and all the anger and confusion and tension from the past few weeks welled up as white-hot rage. Before he had time to really process what he was doing, his arm lashed out, and he sent plates and glasses crashing to the floor.

"HARRY JAMES POTTER!" Severus roared, standing up from the table.

Harry stood up quickly too, almost sending his chair tumbling to the floor. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew he should stop before he completely jumped over the line he had been waiting for Severus to draw all week, but his temper had taken over. His hands shook, and his blood pounded in his ears.

"OR WHAT? JUST ADMIT YOU FUCKING HATE ME! YOU DON'T WANT ME HERE SO JUST DO SOMETHING YOU STUPID LYING ARSE! SEND ME BACK. MAYBE THEY'LL FINISH ME OFF THIS TIME –"

"ENOUGH!"

" – OR MAYBE YOU'LL DO IT. I DON'T EVEN CARE. JUST DO SOMETHING!"

Harry's rant petered off, like letting all the air out of a balloon, as Severus made his way around the table, his features stony and cold. He flinched back as Severus' hand came towards his head and yelped when his guardian's hand clamped around his ear, but more out of surprise than pain. Severus leaned down so their faces were inches apart.

"I said. That. Is. Enough.' He hissed.

Harry leaned back as far as the pressure on his ear would allow and focussed on trying to steady the tremors that were wracking his body. As much as he was tired of waiting for Severus to show his true colours, that didn't mean he was looking forward to the beating that was surely coming.

Severus straightened up and started walking, with Harry in tow, towards the corner of the room. Harry was confused when they reached the corner, and Severus let go and pushed him gently to where the walls met. Harry turned around and raised an eyebrow at his guardian, which Severus just returned with a smirk.

"Turn around. Stay there."

"You- you can't put me in a time out! I'm not a kid!" Harry spluttered, his cheeks turning red.

"Really? You could have fooled me. Now stay there," Severus snapped, turning Harry around himself and walking away.

Harry let out a huff and leaned his forehead against the wall. He listened carefully to try to track where Severus was so he wouldn't be taken by surprise. He could hear the older man walking around, and the soft clinking as the broken dishes were repaired and set back on the table. The room went quiet and he wasn't sure if Severus had left the room or not, but he was too nervous to look around to check. The longer he stood there, the more his embarrassment and anger at being in such a childish position lessened, and it was taken over by anxiety. His stomach twisted in knots, and his breath came in short gasps.

It felt like an eternity later when Severus finally approached, although it was probably only ten minutes. By then, Harry was fighting back tears and imagining all the worst case scenarios of the consequences of his foolish actions. A hand landed gently on his shoulder, and Harry jumped. Harry felt himself being turned around, but he kept his eyes glued to the floor, refusing to meet his guardian's gaze.

"Are you done with the theatrics?"

"Yes, sir," Harry mumbled.

"Good, then come with me."

Severus led him down the hall towards the study. Nervousness clawed at Harry's stomach, and he snuck a glance up towards his guardian. Severus caught his eye and merely raised an eyebrow at him. Cheeks growing red, Harry glued his gaze back on the floor, but he felt his anxiety lessen. Although Severus still did look mildly annoyed, he no longer looked furious.

"Sit," Severus said, pointing at the small table that Harry had noticed last time he was in the room.

He nervously made his way over, glancing around the room as he did so. There didn't seem to be any belts or canes lying around, and certainly if Severus was going to use a spell on him, he could have done that in the dining room, right?

He wasn't paying much attention to what Severus was doing and jumped slightly when an inkwell and stack of parchment landed with a soft thunk on the table. Severus frowned slightly at the child and set a quill down next to the parchment.

"Calm down, child" Severus murmured, squeezing Harry's shoulder softly.

Harry nodded slightly and watched as Severus fixed a glare on his face once more and pointed to the parchment in front of him.

"Now, you are to write out, 'I will not throw childish tantrums' one hundred times. I expect no talking and bring the lines to me when you are done. Are we clear?"

"Yes, sir," Harry mumbled again, taking a moment to steady his shaking hands before picking up the quill.

Lines didn't seem like much of a punishment compared to what Uncle Vernon had used to do. Perhaps this was just one part?

Harry pondered this as he watched Severus retreat to his own desk and pick up a quill and an important looking stack of parchment. At Severus' pointed look, Harry huffed and averted his eyes to his own parchment.

_I will not throw childish tantrums… I will not throw childish tantrums… I will not throw childish tantrums…_

oOoOOoOo

Severus glanced up as his ward huffed yet again. The child was scowling at the parchment as if it had personally affronted him. He ran his quill down the two and a half pages he had already filled with his chicken scratch, counting his progress. Severus turned his eyes back to his own work and fought back a scowl of his own. Going over school reports and lesson plans was one of his least favourite parts of this job. He heard Harry's quill scratch out a few more lines before the chair was pushed back, and footsteps marked his approach.

He held out his hand without looking up and grabbed the pages when they were handed to him. Glancing over them, he did a quick count and nodded briefly and looked up at the boy. Harry was standing nervously in front of the desk, his face carefully blank but Severus could tell he was still scared of him.

With a sigh, Severus picked up a few more sheets of blank parchment and handed it over to Harry.

"I will show proper respect for other people. One hundred times. Understood?"

The child's face fell, but he nodded and grabbed the new sheets. He was obviously tired of writing lines. Severus smirked at this. Perhaps this would help put a stop to his atrocious attitude problem.

A small part in the back of Severus' mind was bothered by how upset the child was, partly by his doing. Not that he cared about the boy, of course, any adult with even a shred of empathy would be bothered by an upset child in their home, right? He was just fulfilling the guardian duties that Dumbledore had entrusted him with.

He had sat at the dining room table observing Harry as he had served his time out, ready to intervene if the boy worked himself into a panic attack. He had obviously been scared about what Severus was going to do to him, but they both had needed the break to reign in their tempers. As Severus watched now, Harry seemed to be mostly over his panic. Although he was still bouncing his knee as he wrote, the tremors seemed to be gone as were the shallow breaths. Satisfied that his ward was okay, he turned his focus back to his own work.

A little over half an hour later, Severus looked up when he heard footsteps approaching once again.

"All done, sir," Harry said, passing over the pages.

Severus scanned the pages and gave the boy a small smile.

"Very good. Now, why don't you take these and bring them upstairs with you? They can be your reminder in case you ever feel the need to act out again." Severus smirked. "I just need to finish up this report. I will be up in a few minutes, and we can talk. I'll send food up with Quinly for you."

Harry nodded and held the parchment as if it would try to bite him. He retreated from the office and Severus watched him go before summoning Quinly to bring food to his ward and returning his attention to the damned report. Adolescents and paperwork would be the death of him, he decided.

When he was finished with that, he begrudgingly made his way upstairs. As much as he needed to talk to the boy, Severus was worried Harry would turn it into another argument. Knocking on the door before pushing it open, he was pleased to see Harry attempting to tidy the room while he waited.

"Oh, uh hello, sir."

"Come and sit. We need to talk," Severus said, gesturing towards the armchair in front of the fireplace.

He summoned one for himself and then asked Quinly again to take Harry's empty lunch plate away and bring a pot of tea. He poured a cup for both of them while Harry fidgeted silently in his own chair.

"Okay, can you tell me what this attitude has been all about recently?"

Harry busied himself with his cup and shrugged.

"None of that anymore, Potter. I haven't pushed you to talk about anything since you came here, but I am drawing the line. You are going to at least talk to me about this."

At this, Harry gave him a mutinous look but let out a sigh.

"I dunno. I just got angry, I guess."

"You've been angry all week. Why?"

"I don't know, okay? I just was."

"I think you do know. Is it connected to why you kept calling me a liar?" Severus probed.

"I guess so." Harry huffed but continued at his guardian's pointed look. "It's just that you weren't doing anything when I misbehaved and that made me nervous because you didn't do what you said you were going to do, and when I get nervous, I get mad."

"So you continued to misbehave to see how I would react?"

Harry nodded miserably and averted his eyes once more.

"I'm sorry, Harry," Severus said quietly.

"Wait, what?" Harry demanded, his head whipping up to stare at this guardian.

"Now I am not excusing your behaviour, because it was absolutely deplorable and you should be ashamed of how you acted, but I also am at fault here. I did not stand by our earlier conversation, and I did not realize how hard that must have been for you. I- well, I thought I was doing what was best for you, but clearly, I was wrong. I think we both have much more learning to do, me how to be a proper guardian, and you how to adjust to living in a home that treats you fairly and kindly."

"It's not your fault, sir," Harry said weakly.

"How about we share the blame for this one?" Severus suggested and smiled slightly when Harry grinned and nodded.

Severus stood up and banished the empty tea cups back to the kitchen. He ruffled Harry's hair and turned to go, his threshold for talking about feelings thoroughly breached.

"Sir- uhh, Severus- wait!" Harry called out, and Severus turned around.

Severus watched the boy as he seemed to debate with himself before launching forward, wrapping his arms around him in a hug. Severus had time to do little more than pat the boy's back before the child stepped back again.

"Uhh... I just – thank you, sir," Harry stuttered out, and Severus chuckled.

"You're welcome, child. Now finish tidying this room and entertain yourself for the remainder of the day. I am behind on my quota of potions for the infirmary. Please stay indoors though, it's raining, and there is no need for you to fall ill again."

"Alright,"

Severus turned to leave but paused at the door.

"Harry? I just wanted to ask one more thing of you. I want you to think about talking about what happened to you while you lived with your aunt and uncle. It's not healthy to keep that all bottled up inside, and I think it would help you to be able to talk through it. You are allowed to talk about anything here, and I want you to, okay?"

Severus watched Harry as he shifted uncomfortably as he avoided Severus' gaze. Harry picked up a few more books off of the ground before finally looking at his guardian, who was still leaning against the door jamb.

"Perhaps," he consented before turning his attention away again.

Severus took that as a small victory and turned to leave. It may have not been the significant progress he would have liked to see in the boy by now, but he would take the little victories as they came. He was beginning to understand that being a guardian to a child and being a head of house were two completely different responsibilities, and he would have to adapt to how he approached the situation.

With a sigh, he made his way down to the potions lab. His head was still pounding with exhaustion, and in his opinion, there was no better cure for stress than brewing a difficult potion. And Merlin knew he needed that right now.


End file.
